CLECKHEATON 27 BEVERLEY 10

Despite a spirited effort Beverley went down to a resurgent Cleckheaton side and as a result slipped to mid-table. On a quagmire pitch they could never get their speedy runners going and their lightweight pack was always going to struggle in the heavy going against a powerful home eight. Cleckheaton are battling to escape from the relegation zone which is probably why they looked more up for it than Beverley who frequently seemed lethargic in comparison. It was not a day for Beverley’s running style of play and in the end they could have no complaints at the result. They were always second best although it was a much closer game than the final score suggests.

Playing uphill in the first half Beverley soon found themselves bogged down in the bottom muddy corner. They struggled desperately to clear their lines which remained a problem all afternoon. For the best part of twenty minutes they were hardly ever out of their own half. But at the end of the first quarter all Cleckheaton had to show for their territorial advantage was a penalty from fly half Ian Gordon. Then against the run of play Beverley took the lead. With almost their first effective attack a chip ahead down the right touchline went loose and Goran Jelencic pounced to send Ally Forth racing to the posts from forty metres. Mike Kilgannon converted to put Beverley 7-3 ahead.

In the heavy conditions the big home pack was proving increasingly difficult to contain and from a penalty lineout ten metres out they drove to the line for Carl Mason to touch down and recapture the lead for Cleckheaton. None the less Beverley were still getting plenty of possession. Junior Tupai at fly half was trying everything to get the backline going but it was not a day for intricate back play and the Cleckheaton threes generally posed the greater threat with their more direct approach. On a dry pitch it might have been a different matter.

Ten minutes into the second half Cleckeaton increased their lead when Gordon made a clean break in midfield and chipped to the corner where full back Ross Hayden collected to go over for a try which Gordon converted. At 15-7 Beverley were two scores behind but they were now enjoying more of the game. A Kilgannon penalty narrowed the gap to five points and they were still in it. They certainly showed plenty of endeavour as they tried to recapture the lead with David Worrall and Danny Morris prominent in the loose and some excellent tackling particularly by Jade Gardiner and Tony Riby-French. Richard Bussey and Gardiner both threatened to break through but running attacks on both sides easily foundered in the rain and mud. It was the power of the Cleckheaton pack that was Beverley’s main bugbear and from a penalty scrum ten metres out Cleckheaton drove over with ease for their number eight Matt Burrows to touch down.

After that nothing went right for Beverley. Kilgannon’s frustration brought him a yellow card, Craig Hancock’s injury disrupted the pack, and following a general melee in which he seemed to be the innocent party Jelencic was shown a red card. With ten minutes remaining a simple penalty which might have brought Beverley a bonus point went agonisingly wide. Then at the very end it was perhaps inevitable that they would make a mess of dealing with a kick-through allowing Cleckheaton winger Mitch Ashworth to cruise in for a final converted try. A 27-10 margin of defeat was probably a bit harsh on Beverley but they had been well outplayed. On the whole it was a day best forgotten.