Recap
Hunslet Hawks looked in a different class with clinical defence and enthusiastic attacking they earned themselves a 52-6 victory over Gateshead Thunder.
The home side revelled in ideal conditions this afternoon and wasted no time with a try that involved almost all the Hawks on the field, the ball travelled from wing to wing before finally reaching the hands of Brickwood who placed it over in the corner. Winger Brickwood couldn’t believe his luck when a gap came available minutes later and a perfectly timed pass from Watson put him over for his second with barely 10 minutes on the clock. The awful conditions the Hunslet outfit faced last week were forgotten about as the side today were throwing the ball about with confidence. Aston Wilson made a real impact on his return to the Hawks starting line up and was causing problems down the left channel but it was prop forward Michael Haley who almost produced the next points. The Gateshead side that are just outside the top 3 in the league have been in good form in recent weeks and were threatening for the second quarter. Aaron Lyons and Liam Hood tackled furiously and were forced to cover defend as Aaron Ollett almost found his way over and a forward pass moments later ruled out a try for Jamie Rooney. Pressure finally told and Thunders Jason Payne crossed. It looked as though it would go to the break with Gateshead chasing the tails at 10-6 but a touch of magic from Andy Ballard as he sprinted down the touchline, put it down and converted pushed the home side safely in front.
The second half was dominated by the Hawks who came out fighting and ready to put some more points on the board. Aston Wilson continuing in his good form was the first over the line, the centre threw defenders out of his way to power over before Ballard helped himself to another, stealing the ball from the air on the back of a neat Danny Ansell kick he touched it down. Hull KR’s Omari Caro featured for Gateshead this afternoon despite his efforts to break through he failed to interrupt the Hawks flow of play and Watson soon dealt with any threat he caused. A superb open to the second half got even better as Liam Hood darted through defenders fending off two on the way to score a glorious try. But the hooker wasn’t finished there, forcing his way across the whitewash in the play that followed he was surrounded by opposition pressure and couldn’t quite get it down, he managed to get the offload away to the supporting Brickwood who gladly put his hands on it to claim his hatrick. The Hawks were making the most of the possession and second rower Oakes famous for driving over from close range showcased a brilliant bit of footwork to get over for the next try with a superb dummy. The action continued as Grimshaw replaced Kain at fullback he sliced through the tiring defence before sprinting though to finish it off. At 48- 6 Barry’s side had run away with it but Jimmy Watson did not look ready to stop there running a perfect line after catching the ball on the full he was only stopped from doing the full length by some frantic cover defence. Aston Wilson caused the final blow with the try of the game out jumping the visitors he stole the ball from the Gateshead hands and placed it over the line before celebrating a fantastic 52-6 victory.
Eaton’s side look comfortable at the top of the league but face a difficult task facing local rivals York City Knights in a week’s time. Today’s display showed very promising signs and the efforts from all showed how much a spot in next week’s side means. Hopefully we can continue on this winning streak and put up a similar performance.
Hunslet RLFC Line up
1. Stuart Kain
Sponsored by: Beth Hampshire
2. Lee Brickwood
Sponsored by: Eric Simon
3. Jimmy Watson
4. Aston Wilson
5. Andrew Ballard
Sponsored by: Barry & Norma Harding
6. Thomas Coyle
Sponsored by: Yorkshire Signs
7. Danny Ansell
8. James Houston
Sponsored by: Stephen Bower Bespoke Joinery
9. David March
Sponsored by: A & R Construction
10. Michael Haley
11. Brooke Broughton
12. John Oakes
Sponsored by: Leeds Bacon Company Ltd
13. Liam Mackay
14. Danny Grimshaw
15. Liam Hood
Sponsored by: Colin & Kath Smith
16. Aaron Lyons
Sponsored by: Linda Hemingway
17. Lewis Reed
Timeline
00:08 Lee Brickwood Try
00:12 Lee Brickwood Try
00:12 Andrew Ballard Goal
00:40 Andrew Ballard Try
00:40 Andrew Ballard Goal
00:41 Aston Wilson Try
00:41 Andrew Ballard Goal
00:47 Andrew Ballard Try
00:50 Liam Hood Try
00:59 Andrew Ballard Goal
00:59 Lee Brickwood Try
01:02 John Oakes Try
01:02 Andrew Ballard Goal
01:07 Danny Grimshaw Try
01:07 Andrew Ballard Goal
01:16 Aston Wilson Try