Sat 12 Mar 2022, 15:00
A depleted Leeds Tykes side, beset by several first half injuries to key players, eventually succumbed under pressure from a vastly experienced, forward-orientated Caldy side.
Leeds won the toss and elected to play into the wind for the first forty, hoping that it would give them an advantage after the break. However, the accomplished Ravers stood up well, backing themselves to keep it in the forwards and march the Tykes downfield.
Caldy coach Matt Cairns praised the attitude of the Leeds side saying they never gave in. “We knew what to expect from Leeds, they are very effective at what they do, particularly defensively.
“I think they’ve definitely got enough to stay up and would be very surprised if they went down.”
Captain Will Smith left the field after 20 minutes, a situation which coach Jon Callard said affected the team cohesion, “disrupting the pattern” of the game.
The visitors opened the scoring on nine minutes, capitalising on a free ball that squirted out of the side of a ruck; Caldy’s Ben Jones sprinted down the short side to score before being unable to convert.
Charlie Venables continued his fine run of form with the boot to keep his side in touch, before being forced off in the closing stages of the first half.
Either side of the Leeds back line reshuffle, forced upon them by Venables’ early departure, Ben Jones slotted penalties to give his side a sense of control going into the sheds.
The Tykes came out galvanised, as they have done so often this season. Frustratingly for our supporters, all too often they were unable to turn possession into points. One bright spark came through replacement Will Hardwick, who was the quickest to react to a ball that was hacked through, taking advantage of Caldy’s failure to ground the ball in goal.
Leeds failed to build on this momentum and coughed up possession, as Caldy scrum half Joe Murray found a gap from the base of a scrum to trick the Tykes drift defence and restore his side’s control of proceedings.
Further tries from Adam Aigbokhae and Nick Royle secured the try bonus point for the National One pacesetters, as a tired Leeds pack failed to repel constant pressure. Ben Jones added to his personal tally, converting the first of them.
Harry Jukes scored a late consolation try for the Tykes, collecting a high ball from the restart and racing down the wing to score in the final play.
