Beverley 7 Pontefract 12

Beverley 7 Pontefract 12

The Pontefract team owed the supporters and themselves a response to a disastrous eighty point loss to Beverley at home earlier in the season. With a good turnout in training in the week and a subsiding injury list, the preparation for the match was good and the team delivered.

Beverley is a difficult place to visit and to concede only one try is a great testament to the defence throughout the team. Along with the great defence the forward pack once again dominated their counterparts in the tight allowing the runners front foot ball to attack.

With a difficult cross wind to contend with Ponte missed a great opportunity to open the scoring early as, from a promising attacking position, a good counter ruck from Beverley denied Ponte possession. This was followed by sustained pressure from Beverley on the Ponte line where the defence was organised and resilient. Ponte lost hooker Ethan Potts to a head injury early on and had to revert to a three prop front row with Rob Scholey filling in. With Tad Nyanjowa, Brodie Matthews and Josh Hough executing many turnovers, Pontes defence stood firm and scored the only points of the first half when a Rasher Bacon break lead to winger Dave Findlay racing sixty metres for an unconverted try.

In the second half Ponte continued to play well with veteran half back pairing Craig Fawcett and Glen Boyd running the game. Unfortunately it was Bev who scored next. The Ponte players stopped for what they thought was a knock on only for the referee to wave play on and a converted try was conceded.

Losing seven to five with twenty minutes left Ponte were in no mood to surrender. Big carries from the likes of Sealy, Sam Millard and debutant Larne Patrick kept Ponte going forward and eventually the pressure told.

Ponte got possession on the Beverley line and executed brilliantly a series of pick and drives, drawing in the whole Beverley pack. This reporter has been a critic of passing the ball out too early in these situations but this time patience paid off as scrum half Fawcett picked exactly the right time to pass out to young winger Ciaren Tucker, who ran over unopposed for a converted try.

Ponte saw the game out without any scares for a memorable victory.

It was hard to pick individuals out in what was a fine team performance, a fact which was confirmed by the Beverley president afterwards. The Beverley captain thought Sam Millard was Gaz Burns which from a rugby point of view was a compliment. Beverley gave the Ponte man of the match to prop Hough who went on to win the traditional race to guzzle a pint