Sandal 66 Keighley 3
Sandal continued their good start to the season with an eleven try rout of visitors Keighley to lead the Yorkshire One table at this early point of the campaign. Keighley were first on the scoreboard on ten minutes when their fly half kicked a penalty following a home infringement at a ruck but Sandal responded on ten minutes with fly half Tom Smith leveling at three all. After a slow start the Milnthorpe Green men hit their stride four minutes later when from an attacking ruck on the visitors twenty two metre line winger Simon Frewin danced round a couple of defenders before feeding supporting flanker Alastair Burgess who powered his way over to the left of the posts with Tom Smith converting. From this point on Sandal took complete control and following further pressure fly half Smith dummied his way cleverly over the line to stroll under the posts and then convert his try to give his side a seventeen point to three lead after twenty minutes. Two minutes later winger Simon Frewin showed his scoring instincts to cross followed shortly after by prop Rob Norbury following powerful work by his fellow forwards with full back Chris Reakes converting superbly from the touchline into the wind. The half was rounded off by a superb solo seventy metre effort by winger Frewin who beat half a dozen defenders as he scorched his way over with fly half Smith converting to leave the score thirty six points to three at the break.
In spite of the game already being won captain Matt Hemingway left his team in no doubt at half time as to not repeat the failings of the previous week and to push on for a comprehensive victory and it was Hemingway himself who led the way when he darted round the blindside from a maul to race in from half way on fifty minutes. Six minutes later prop Sam Tee powered his way over from a tap penalty fifteen metres out followed shortly after by his fellow prop Rob Norbury who crossed wide out after finding himself at outside centre. Powerful work from a lineout on the Keighley twenty two metre line saw flanker Jack Smith driven over the line to give his side a fifty six point to three lead with fifteen minutes to go and a minute later this was followed by perhaps the best try of the game when sharp hands from their own line saw Sandal flanker Alastair Burgess collect a pass at pace and side-step the Keighley full back to race over from the half way line. The visitors refused to give in and spent the final ten minutes of the game camped on the Sandal line but unable to find a way through the committed home defence as they attempted to maul their way over the line through their pack of forwards. When they finally gave up and attempted to move the ball down their back line a spilled pass in the centre was quickly seized upon by the home side and quick hands again saw winger Simon Frewin round his opposite number and outpace the cover to race in again from seventy metres for his second hat trick in consecutive games in the last act of the match to leave his side victors by sixty six points to three.
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