RU: Six-try demolition job inspires YMCA

Sep 30 2008 by David Lockwood, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

HUDDERSFIELD YMCA claimed their first victory of the season when they hit Old Leodiensians with a six-try feast at a sun-drenched Salendine Nook.

In conditions more akin to the Costas, YM finally gave their long-suffering supporters something to cheer with an impressive performance of fast open rugby, in which player-coach Jamie Marsden dictated play from stand-off, while captain Neil Walker had an inspirational game in the forwards.

YM gave a union debut to 19-year-old Great Britain student rugby league back rower Chris Clarke, who played at inside centre, while Colt James Bell made his debut at hooker, and both made telling contributions.

Clarke was involved in the build-up to the first try after 10 minutes when the three-quarters combined well and from 40m out the ball was fizzed across field to Stuart Morton – making his first start of the season – and he gratefully accepted his co-centre’s well-timed pass to race away for the opening try.

James Swift tacked on the conversion and, for the first time this season, YM were ahead!

Nick Porter pulled three back for Leos after YM conceded a silly penalty.

But from the re-start lively winger Chris Beever realised he was running out of space, and stepped inside the cover before feeding the supporting Clarke who stormed over.

Swift was again on target with the conversion, while Porter notched a second penalty to keep the visitors in the game.

Try-provider Beever then turned try-scorer on the half-hour mark when he finished off a brilliant move which began with Kevin Hellawell winning a good line-out before a missed pass from Marsden sent the winger bursting through a massive gap in Leo’s defence, and with Swift again adding the extras, YM went in 21-6 ahead at the break.

The second half began scrappily as both sides seemed to be suffering with the heat, and YM made three substitutions on the hour, with Sam Housley, Simon Whitehead and Gavin Stead replacing Hellawell, prop James Watson and Marsden.

James Swift moved up to stand-off while Stead dropped in at full-back, where apart from an early knock-on, the Colt player had a tremendous game and proved to be the catalyst to YM regaining their momentum.

Scrum half Simon Wilson, having one of his best games in YM colours, showed his new-found confidence when he took a quick tap penalty and brought the barnstorming Whitehead onto a scoring pass.

Clarke added his second try after a free-flowing 70m move in which Stead played a major role, before the young substitute finished off the try of the afternoon which began on his own line. Swift kicked all the conversions and also slotted over a penalty to bring a personal tally of 15 points.

The visitors’ persistence paid off, when centre Roy Pearson went through several weak tackles to claim a consolation try.

But the score did nothing to diminish the delight of Marsden and his team of coaches, who may now be starting to see their hard work bearing fruit with YM’s best win since February 2004.

YMCA: Swift; Taylor, Morton, Clarke, Beever; Marsden (Stead 60), Wilson; Watson (Whitehead 60), Bell, Gregson, Scholes, Hellawell (Housley 60), Lyon, Leone-Mazza, Walker.