Referee Mike Smails produces a red from his pocket.
It’s for Mayfield coach Sam Butterworth, who has hurled abuse at the Kiwi official. He raises his hands in disbelief at the fact he, the coach, has been sent off.
But there are no tunnels to storm down. No ice baths to cool off in, no TV interviews to moan in, no bottles to kick.
Instead, Butterworth trudges two metres away from his bench and watches, abashed, as his side go on to progress to the next round of the Challenge Cup.
For many amateur outfits, this is where the road to Wembley really starts; on soggy pitches in front of a few hundred fans.
In the shadows of Leigh Sports Village, where the Leopards staged their glorious fightback against World Champions St Helens the night before, two mainstays of amateur rugby league’s topflight met.
Exit stage left Leopards. Curtain rise Leigh Miners Rangers.
From darkness comes light. E tenebris lux. A fitting motto on the crest bore by Miners – a side coming into this Challenge Cup tie on the back of an opening league loss to newly-promoted Kell.
For the visitors, it was a trip down the East Lancs Road to Twist Lane, a more leisurely journey than their 600-mile round Cornish coast quest in the previous round.
Bright-light money-spinner? Certainly not.
But a win would provide a glittering passport into the fourth round – a Championship side the likely opponent. Just two wins away from facing a Super League titan.
It’s the oldest and most prestigious rugby league cup competition in the world. Wembley in sight. On the shoulders of giants in history, 26 men take to the field and put on a show for the swathes of supporters.
In their £1 programme, a plea for more volunteers and an update on their next highly-anticipated project – repairing and maintaining the dressing room roof.
This tie was much more than an amateur rugby league showdown, much more than a game on a sloped field in the middle of Leigh, much more than a battle in some rather unfavourable conditions.
This tie was about community.
This year, 79 clubs will compete in nine rounds of the cup; only 26 have won in the competition’s 127-year history. But that won’t matter to clubs like Mayfield and Miners.
Touch judges assemble, enemy lines targeted, the whistle blows.
An uncharacteristically large winger resembles more of a forward – all shapes and sizes not quite fitting into the mould. They wouldn’t want it any other way.
A group of young Leigh fans start their own Challenge Cup tie in the far corner against half of Mayfield’s U10s.
“You know number 11, that’s Ollie’s godfather.”
The number 11 in question? Miners’ Joe Connor. He’s off to a slow start. His sluggish side have conceded two tries in these game-defining opening stages.
The meeting is narrated by audible belches, crunches of tackles on diaphragms and cautious encouragement from supporters standing on the benches of a seated patio.
“Come on, keep believing. It’ll come, it’ll come” shouts a supporter, one of more than 400 home fans huddled together in the brisk, drizzly cold at Twist Lane.
Half-time and it’s 20-6 to Mayfield. Paul Rowland’s assistant turns to the coach, “We’re just a bit all over the show, everyone’s flying off on their own.”
But Miners come back out fighting with Noah Lancelott, who feeds Jonny Youds coming through on the wing.
The deficit sits at just 10 points.
Lancelott leads the charge at full-back, but the rest of Rowland’s round table knights struggle to follow suit.
Following a moment of fury, Butterworth is sent beyond the touchline by referee Smails.
“There you go Sam. You’re swearing at me and questioning my integrity,” says Smails.
It’s Mayfield’s new Australian recruits who make all the difference in the second half, tallying Mayfield’s try total to seven.
Brothers Devlin and Travis Long are crafting their rugby league narrative alongside Dakota Tolhurst and Jarred Dash – all are more than 9,000 miles from home, playing with Mayfield for the season.
Harry Sheridan, 17, skips over the line for the final try. Full-time. Leigh Miners Rangers 10 Rochdale Mayfield 38.
For Leigh, it’s shaking heads and hands on knees as their hopes of a historic fourth-round tie slip beyond their reach. Mayfield, meanwhile, know their dream still burns bright.
After a gruelling 80 minutes, the players tuck into pasta and pies and butties and buffet delights. In Miners’ clubhouse, their new Rod Raines Heritage Wall is proudly displayed, front and centre.
The collage reads: “Established in 1966 when Rod Raines, Harry Westhead, John Norris and Eric Ratcliffe came together without a kit or a ball, it was impossible to imagine how this club would develop over the years and achieve what it has achieved.”
The community lifeblood that runs through the terraced streets of Leigh rings true at this sporting hub.
And the operation thrives. Rugby, families, food and character. A heart-warming recipe.
Though Leigh Miners Rangers may never sing Abide with Me at Wembley, the lyrics carry weight. “Shine through the gloom and point me to the skies.”
In Leyther terms, “Be reet next year that.”
