RUGBY
UNION -
“SKIPTON WIN
AGAIN AND STAY TOP”
Despite a somewhat lethargic and lacklustre first
half performance, the Reds came good in the second half and ended as
comfortable winners to stay top of the table.
Dinnington, without a win so far this season, were
hungry for a chance to impress their home supporters and realised that Skipton were not playing in top form.
During the first half they constantly harassed the
Reds and this resulted in play being scrappy and Skipton were far from their
usual cohesive selves. The home side used their sloping pitch to advantage and,
with the referee constantly stopping the game for minor infringements, entertainment
value was limited.
Indeed, the first half seemed to be heading for a nil
score until livewire centre James Burke saw an opening and went over for a try
which, following a successful conversion by Darren Howson, gave the Reds a half
time lead of 7 –0.
Almost immediately after the restart, Daren Howson
successfully kicked a penalty and with the score at 10-0 up Skipton started to
look good.
But then, for the first time this season, the Reds
got a fright and paid a heavy price for ill discipline. Penalties against them
allowed Dinnington to gain ground and in a five minute period the hosts broke
through to score twice. With a score line of 10-10, the all conquering Skipton
team were suddenly looking vulnerable.
However, it needed this shock to get Skipton into top
gear and for the final twenty minutes of the game they dominated to finally run
out easy winners.
The forwards started playing as a cohesive unit and
flankers Michael Snowden and Iain Sneddon in particular stood out.
This allowed the backs to open the game up and soon
they were in full flight and a second try came from James Burke when he
finished off a strong bursting run by Hamish Munro. With another successful conversion by Howson,
17-10 was looking better.
Then another successful penalty from Howson made it
20-10 and all the play had now changed to pressure on the home line with the
prospect of another good win for Skipton.
After a period of sustained forward pressure on the
Dinnington line, Adam Oldfield dummied then strolled through a gap to gain an
easy try. Howson again converted and brought the score up to 27-10 and this was
the final result.
On the day the Reds seemed to be missing the strength
of Moa Meki (injured) in the forwards and the power of George Smithson
(unavailable) in the backs. Nevertheless, full credit must go to Dinnington who
played with real commitment sufficient to subdue Skipton in the early
stages.
Possibly, after such a great start to the season, it
is too easy to criticize the Reds for producing only a ‘normal’ performance.
After all, a win at 27-10 and still top of the table is pretty good!