W 22-14

By Charlie Hopper

Scarborough RUFC registered their first win of 2023 after a gritty second-half performance helped them beat rivals Pocklington 22-14 at a blustery Silver Royd.

Having had a disappointing start to the new year, Head Coach Matty Jones will have been hoping for a fast start from his side, but they found themselves behind early on. Ricky Gormley made a run from deep and bundled his way over the line. Christian Pollock added the extras to give his side a 7-0 lead. Scarborough found themselves on the back foot again, with a penalty stopping the visitors from adding a second try to their tally. The home side hit straight back in the 12^th minute courtesy of Jake Lyon. The Hooker collected the pass from Euan Govier to score his second try in consecutive games for 7-5. The conditions continued to halt the flow of the match, but it was the visitors who stretched their lead in the 24^th minute. It was slick work from the backs with Pollock offloading for Harry Matthews to score. Giving his side a comfortable 14-5 lead.

The second half started in frustrating fashion for Scarborough, going close on numerous occasions but errors proving costly. They put this behind them and reduced the deficit in the 52^nd minute. Replacement Tom Makin raced down the wing before Joel Little collected the pass and reached for the line. Tom Ratcliffe failed to add the extras for 14-10. The lead then changed hands in the 62^nd minute with Jones’ side building the phases close to the Pocklington line and Ratcliffe finding Govier out wide for him to score. Leading by just a point as the Regional Two North East fixture headed into the final 10 minutes, Scarborough stretched their advantage to 22-14 with a converted try. Lyon took the penalty quickly, used his power to smash his way through the defence and reach for the line to secure the bonus point. Ratcliffe added the extras. Pocklington went in search of a late try but ran out of ideas and Scarborough held out to put an end to their recent run of poor form.

Next weekend sees Jones’ side make the tough trip to second place Pontefract as they look to put a strong run together.