COVENTRY BEARS 20 WARRINGTON WIZARDS 48 – Butts Arena, Saturday

Champions Warrington Wizards came right back into form with an emphatic victory at the Bears, scoring nine tries.
There was little in it during a tight first half, Wizard’s superior finishing just giving them the edge in front of a crowd of over 250.
The opening score came just after the quarter hour, a speculative kick downfield fooling the Coventry defence and Warrington centre Dave Yii pounced to score between the posts.
Three minutes later, Coventry’s prolific point scoring loose forward Si Perry pulled a try back with a rumbling charge from short distance which the visiting defence could not handle.
Warrington were guilty of some indiscipline and despite being down to 12 men following a sin binning, they scored again when half back Chris Chambers found a gap in the Bears defence to scamper through.
With both of their tries being converted by Warren Ayres, the Wizards led 12-4 at the break.
In the second half, Warrington came out firing on all cylinders and tore through the Bears midfield and five tries in the third quarter ensured them consecutive on the road successes.
Wizards’ best Chris Campbell exploited some tired defending in the centre of the field, claiming a brace, second rower Jono Smith and his pack partner Paul Alcock also taking advantage in a dominant spell.
Substitute Mike Rossen added another before winger Troy Brophy scored in the corner to secure victory.
Si Perry again scored for the Bears to give the home fans some heart and when home back rower Matt Cooper went in by the posts the scoreline, respectability and a possible bonus point beckoned for the hosts.
The fight back was short lived, however, as again the Wizards hit back with Smith adding his second and full back Carl Lloyd also crossing.
Bears’ Australian centre Chad Grant managed to leave the home supporters with some consolation as he went over on the right to conclude the proceedings.

BEARS
1 Tom Tsang
2 Rob Nichols
3 Steve Coleman
4 Chad Grant
5 Andy McGrory
6 Dan Poulton
7 Scott Clendenning Fenton
8 Mike Venn
9 Alex Brown
10 Rhidian Booth
11 Matt Cooper
12 Luke Watts
13 Si Perry
Subs (all used)
14 Rob Brown
15 Harry Kaufman
16 Dan Glover
17 Adam Barnett
Tries: Perry (2), Cooper, Grant
Goals: Coleman 2
WIZARDS
1  Carl Lloyd
2 Graham Healey
3 Dave Yii
4 Liam Walsh
5 Troy Brophy
6 Alan Reddecliff
7 Chris Campbell
8 Dan Stubbs
9 Warren Ayres
10 Leighton Smith
11 Paul Alcock
12 Jono Smith
13 Craig Millington
Subs (all used)
14 Craig Middlemore
15  Mike Stout
16 Mike Robson
17 Tony Haddock
Tries: Yii, Campbell (2), Smith (2), Alcock, Rosson, Brophy, Lloyd     
Goals Ayres 4, Smith 2
Men of the match:    BEARS - Tom Tsang    WIZARDS -  Chris Campbell
Half time: 4-12
Referee: Joe Cobb

DEWSBURY CELTIC 38 FEATHERSTONE LIONS 12 – Crow Nest Park, Saturday

Celtic consolidated second spot with an impressive victory, their second in succession over derby rivals thanks to a second half super show.
Dewsbury took the lead in the 12th minute, hooker Joe Waters diving over from close range, Niki Crabtree goaling.
Two minutes later, a break by Alex Walmsley from his own 20 saw him eat up another 50 metres before offloading to the supporting Niki Crabtree who went over between the posts and added the extras to make it 12-0.
Lions clawed their way back into the contest just after the quarter way mark, a clever long cut out pass freeing winger Adam Hepworth who went over out wide for an unconverted try.
The visitor’s revival was further enhanced in their next attacking set, another cleverly constructed overlap seeing Jon Budmore cross in the opposite corner, the conversion attempt again drifting wide.
Celtic reasserted themselves just before the break, Dean Lawford’s defence splitting pass sending Danny Crabtree racing over by the posts, his brother Niki goaling to make it 18-8 at the break.
There was little between the sides in an attritional third quarter, Dewsbury extending their lead with the game-breaking try just before the hour.
Danny Thomas broke clear from the back, racing 30 metres, he found supporting Liam Edwards who handed on to Liam Walmsley who jinked round the final defender and raced to the corner for a super score.
Celtic stretched their lead in the 64th minute, quick handling by Liam Walmsley released Josh West, his pass found the linking Thomas who returned the compliment for Liam Walmsley to finish off in the corner, this time Niki Crabtree nailing the conversion.
There was a late flourish of points, first with five minutes to go, Danny Lee took Josh West’s short ball to go over by the posts, West then sending in Liam Walmsley in similar style for his hat trick score.
With the last move of the game, Celtic missed a tackle and Rich Frankland profited, scything his way to the corner for his Featherstone’s third unconverted try.

CELTIC
1    Danny Thomas
2    Tom Kilroy
3    Danny Crabtree
4    Liam Walmsley
5    Niki Crabtree
6    Josh West
7    Dean Lawford
8    Alex Walmlsey
9    Joe Waters
10    Elliott Smith
11    Tom Norris
12    Eddie Kilroy
13    Dom Byrne
    Subs (all used)
14    Danny Lee
15    Liam Edwards
16    Jason Muranka
17    Matthew Bailey

Tries: Waters (12), N. Crabtree (15), D. Crabtree (17), N. Walmsley (57, 64, 78), Lee (75)
Goals: N. Crabtree 6

LIONS
1    Danny Gassell
2    Sam Wilson
3    Jon Budmore
4    Lee Land
5    Adam Hepworth
6    Andy Frankland
7    Steve Couts
8    Daz Fisher
9    Dan Milton
10    Adam Sayner
11    Tom Burns
12    Scott Wilson
13    Ben Smith
    Subs (all used)
14    Tony Yates
15    Dean Gamble
16    Kyle Littlewood
17    Sam Curtisan

Tries: Hepworth (22), Budmore (24), Frankland (79)
Men of the match:    CELTIC – Liam Walmsley        LIONS – Steve Coutts
Half time: 18-8
Referee: David Sharpe

NOTTINGHAM OUTLAWS 22 HUDDERSFIELD UNDERBANK RANGERS 54 – Harvey Haddon Stadium, Saturday

Outlaws’ unbeaten run at Harvey Hadden came to end when they were defeated by excellent league leaders Huddersfield Underbank Rangers.
Huddersfield made it seven wins on the spin although they were made to work for their three points by a diligent home side.
 A scoreline of 20-0 to the visitors at half-time was not a fair reflection on the opening 40 minutes with Nottingham having several chances to get points on the board and at times stifling a Huddersfield attack that has piled the points on their opposition in recent weeks.
What did not help them was that within a minute of the kick off, Jimmy Goodwin had to leave the action with concussion.
 Both teams had chances to score with returnee Michael Harrison racing back to deny Huddersfield a certain try and then debutant Max Chetwyn was held up for the Outlaws following a good passage of play involving Oliver Crick and Dominic Walsh.
 Three Huddersfield tries in a ten minute spell quickly put Nottingham on the back foot.
 First, Courtney Allette took advantage of an exposed left-side of the Nottingham defence following a quick play-the-ball to break the deadlock with Neil Barratt converting.
 Then a penalty against Outlaws captain George Strachan for holding down was punished when Adam Ryder pushed his way over to extend the lead.
 Nottingham threatened to cut the deficit but were unable to capitalise on a superb 60 metre break by Walsh and 90 seconds later Huddersfield scored again.
 Underbank demonstrated their ability to stretch the play and after Luke Davison had saved a certain breakaway try and the Outlaws defence still getting back into position, Barratt touched down and converted his own effort.
 Undeterred, Nottingham continued to press forward and Coryn Ward and Will Reeve both went close as the home side began to get into a rhythm.
 Another sixty metre break, this time from full-back Reeve gave the crowd hope but he was unlucky to lose the ball in the tackle as the defence scrambled back.
 Reeve was proving to be a handful and following another break, Davison went close again but the Outlaws suffered a body blow right on half time when Sam Hendrick collected a Paul Calland kick on the last and ran the length of the field missing diving tackles from Strachan and Davison along the way.
Rangers extended their lead two minutes into the second half when a wayward pass from Crick was picked up by Lee St Hilaire who swooped to score and claimed their sixth separate try scorer when Shaun Smith capitalised on mounting pressure.
Three more Huddersfield tries in six minutes either side of the hour mark further illustrated why they are proving to be the team to beat this year, all exhibiting clinical finishing.
 Ryder grabbed his second before Richard Aka showed a clean pair of heels to race away, St Hilaire then claiming his double, Barrett goaling all of them.
Nottingham showed great resolve not to crumble and deservedly posted points of their own.  
 Two powerful runs up the middle from Strachan got them into striking distance and a moment of magic from Calland who produced a sublime behind the back pass while being tackled set up position.
When Calland got the ball back, a chip to the wing with the outside of the right boot found its way to Jodi Spurgeon and he got the hosts off the mark.
 Five minutes later, the home crowd were cheering again when another behind the back pass, this time from scrum half Crick, set the Outlaws on the way again and Reeve got the try he thoroughly deserved, Calland converting.
 A training ground move paid off for Nottingham shortly after when Calland kicked straight from the base of a scrum and Walsh sprinted down field to beat everyone to the ball and continue his try scoring exploits so far this season.
Rangers stemmed the flow, Sam Dalby’s touchdown and his side’s tenth bringing up the half century but the Outlaws battled until the final minute and crossed again through Reeve’s dazzling run.

OUTLAWS
1 Will Reeve
2 Luke Davison
3 Andrew Cassetari
4 Dom Walsh
5 Max Chetwyn
6 Oliver Crick
7 Olly Beech
8 Dan Reeds
9 Mike Harrison
10 George Strachan
11 Jimmy Goodwin
12 Bryn Waldram
13 Dan Smith
Subs (all used)
14 Paul Calland
15 Will Ephraim
!^ Coryn Ward
17 Jodi Spurgeon
Tries: Spurgeon, Reeve 2, Walsh
Goals: Calland 2

RANGERS
1 Sam Hendrick
2 Courtney Allette
3 Nick Briggs
4 Adam Ryder
5 Shaun Smith
6 Neil Barrett
7 Alex Chatterton
8 Craig Williams
9 Adam Carroll
10 Sam Dalby
11 Sam Housley
12 Rob Joyce
13 Lee St Hilaire
Subs (all used)
14 Will Midgley
15 Jack Mitchell
16 Chris Geoghegan
17 Richard Aka
Tries: Allette, Ryder 2, Barrett, Hendrick, St Hilaire 2, Smith, Aka, Dalby
Goals: Barrett 7
Men of the match:    OUTLAWS – Will Reeve        RANGERS – Neil Barrett
Half time: 0-20
Referee: Brandon Robinson

VALLEY COUGARS 44 BRAMLEY BUFFALOES 18 – Caerphilly, Saturday

A return to Caerphilly meant a return to winning ways as Valley Cougars overcame a physical Bramley outfit.
The hosts came out of the blocks the quickest and got the first try of the game when Shaun Owens made a break from dummy-half and fed Phil Carleton who crossed after just three minutes. Paul Emanuelli converted.
Owens was next to score on nine minutes after strong running from the forwards had given the Cougars a good attacking platform and, having scanned his options, the hooker dived over from short range.
Scrum half Carleton’s return having missed the previous week’s defeat to Featherstone was paying significant dividends and he then turned provider for the Cougars’ next two scores.
A low pass from Owens was picked up off his toes by the half back before a delicate inside pass enabled Tylan Mafi to cross untouched – Emanuelli again goaling to give the Cougars a 16-0 lead.
Bramley sought to mount a comeback and pinned the Cougars back onto their own try line after the restart but determined Cougars defence saw the Buffaloes complete two sets within the Cougars half but with little return.
Having extinguished the Bramley threat for the time being, slick handling between Mafi, Owens and Barrie Phillips almost created an opening for Lewis Fox.
Then, an outside break from Carleton gave the Cougars a two-on-one, allowing the clever half-back to find Fox who went over to score.
With the Cougars holding firm in defence, the Buffaloes tweaked their tactics and looked to kick their way back into the game – a high bomb to the corner was brilliantly defused by Cougars wing Robin Lock – but a chip over the top lead to the bounce of the ball deceiving opposite wing Ricky Allsopp, gifting Shaun Flynn a first try for the visitors; Graham Harrison converted to make the score 20-6.
Continued forward superiority from the Cougars presented the home side with another attacking opportunity just before half-time, Emanuelli’s inside pass sent Steve Bray through a gap, but the prop was stripped of the ball with the try line at his mercy.
The opening minutes of the second half saw each side receive a yellow card; Mafi went to the sin bin for a high shot and he was joined by Flynn minutes later for repeated dissent.
Once the attention returned to rugby it was the Cougars who struck again, Phillips breaking the line to race home before adding a second from close range two minutes later, Emanuelli goaling both to stretch the lead out to 32-6.
Both teams then traded tries in quick succession - Allsopp raced clear after being released by James Allen before Sam Booker forced his way over for Bramley.
On the hour mark, a second Cougars player entered the sin bin as Ross Coombs’ fine first start of the season was tarnished by yellow.
Yet it was not to deter the hosts, Carleton got his second after Emanuelli again utilised the inside channel, enabling his half-back partner to skip past the covering defence and score.
Bramley continued to look for a way back into the game but were met by ferocious tackling from Coombs, and front row pairing Ryan Sadler and Mark Jones.
In behind, Kevin James dealt with testing kicks and was often the starting point for Cougars attacks – turning defence into attack with powerful runs from deep.
But Bramley’s persistence paid off when Tom Langton crossed, and Flynn returned from the sin bin to score his second try late on.

COUGARS
1 Kevin James
2 Ricky Allsopp
3 Lewis Fox
4 James Allen
5 Robin Lock
6 Paul Emanuelli
7 Phil Carleton
8 Mark Jones
9 Shaun Owens
10 Steve Bray
11 Barrie Phillips
12 Ross Coombs
13 Tylan Mafi
Subs (all used)
14 Ryan Sadler
15 John Sanigar
16 Kyle Blackmore
17 Lee Jenkins
Tries: Carleton (3, 63), Owens (9), Mafi (15), Fox (25), Phillips (47,49), Allsopp (54)
Goals: Emanuelli 6/8

BUFFALOES
1 Shaun Flynn
2 Matthew Oliver
3 Reece Spurr
4 Tom Langton
5 Alistair James
6 Sam Coates
7 Liam Walsh
8 Sam Booker
9 Richard Hulme
10 Dave Parker
11 Sam Matthews
12 Nathan Smith
13 Graham Harrison
Subs (all used)
14 Graham Nash
15 Sam Neave
16 Craig Broadbent
17 Ash Taylor
Tries: Flynn (31, 77), Booker (56), Langton (68)
Goals: Harrison 1/4
Men of the match:    COUGARS – Phil Carleton    BUFFALOES – Sam Booker
Half time: 20-6
Referee: Paul Marklove

HEMEL STAGS 6 KIPPAX KNIGHTS 16 - Pennine Way, Sunday

The rain meant that this was always likely to be a close encounter and so it proved, Kippax hanging on for victory after leading 4-0 at the break.
Hemel, in their second consecutive home fixture, lost influential forward Dan Grevsmuhl to injury for possibly the season.
TKnights allowed the kick off to run dead and were forced to drop out but survived the scare and then elected to run a penalty in front of the home posts, but the attack was diffused.
Stags’ injury woes continued when prop James Howitt suffered a knee injury after seven minutes as the packs continued to struggle for ascendancy.
On 20 minutes, Barry John Swindells missed a shot at goal from a penalty and hard working Eddie M’Baraga was held up over the try line.
Knights centre Stuart Biscome was similarly stopped on the try line and Martin Taylor bundled into touch soon after, Danny Stanley being sin binned for dissent.
M’Baraga was again just denied and two minutes before the break, Stags knocked on and from the scrum Knights went left and Richard Stone squeezed in at the corner.
M’Baraga got his reward four minutes into the second period, taking defenders over the line with him, Swindells missing the goal but landing a penalty soon after to edge the Stags in front.
That was negated on the 50th minute when Gavin Adkin kicked a penalty for offside and, on the hour, the Yorkshiremen were in front.
A long kick through was caught by Matt Cannon but he had a foot in touch and Knights again went left for Biscome to go over out wide in a replica move to their first touchdown.
Hemel forced a repeat set but Tim Stevens knocked on in a promising position and the hosts paid the penalty, Gavin Swanson carving a hole in their defence and went 50 metres unopposed for the decisive try, Adkin goaling.
The game, which had been feisty, turned ugly in 77th minute when a Kippax player allegedly went into a tackle with his knees and there followed an altercation involving all 26 players which resulted in Kippax’s Stanley being dismissed for fighting and Radan of Hemel seeing red for the same offence.

STAGS
1    
Barry John Swindells
2    Ashley Fyson
3    Matt Cannon
4    Mitchell Henderson
5    Yusuf Lawal
6    
Conor Boyd Barnes
7    Ryan Butcher
8    James Howitt
9    Tom Sadler
10    Adam Hill
11    Eddie M’Baraga
12    Tom Thompson-Essex
13    Illya Radan
    Subs (all used)
14    Stuart Fee
15    Sol Lawal
16    Tim Stevens
17    Conor Farrell

Tries: M’Baraga (44)
Goal: Swindells

KNIGHTS
1    Chris Redfearn
2    Sam Field
3    Stuart Biscome
4    Dale Cogan
5    Richard Stone
6    Andy Speak
7    Gavin Adkin
8    Martin Taylor
9    Paul Brown
10    Craig Jones
11    Steven Scott
12    Rob Firth
13    Craig Oliver
    Subs (all used)
14    Gavin Swinson
15    Tom Field
16    Adam Withington
17    Danny Stanley

Tries: Stone (38), Biscome (60), Swanson (70)
Goals: Adkin 2
Men of the match:    STAGS -     Eddie M’Baraga    KNIGHTS – Stuart Biscome
Half time: 0-4
Referee: Tom Mather