Recap
In a nail biting vital fixture at the Huntington Stadium, the Hawks battled until the final minute and walked away with the win. A courageous effort from the boys who picked up injuries throughout the afternoon but kept up their winning streak with a 33-30 victory.
The Hawks got off to an unconventional start allowing the home side to dominate with two early tries Sam Latus got lucky with the first one then Simon Brown making the most of a rare mistake as Kain just let the ball come free too close to the line. Barry’s side were quick to put an end to such a bad start, with a try of their own quick play from Coyle and a nice inside ball for prop Yates to come storming onto adding to his increasing score tally this season. Proving they were here to take it all from this game the Hawks were not charitable and ruthless defending on the line gave the opposition nothing. The next try was on the cards as Grimshaw asked questions of the line before drawing in 2 defenders and giving a spiralling pass to Watson who was fitting in perfectly to his new role on the wing and pushed over in the corner. Skipper March knew the importance of pulling level early on and landed the conversion from the touch line, to do just that. Thomas Coyle was brilliant for the visitors and an individual effort on 27minutes saw him cross under the posts. A 40-20 for the Hunslet outfit fuelled them even more giving them the momentum to cross the whitewash once again this time March touching down for himself. With a comfortable 22-12 lead the break wasn’t far away. It wasn’t ideal as the Hawks were in for a nervy finish to the first half. The hosts putting pressure on and sending George Elliot over the top of Kain making it one score the difference. The game showed no signs of calming down as the Hawks supporters were out of their seats when Oakes went trundling over the line on the back of a pass from Haigh. 26-18 after 40 minutes.
The officials were having to constantly warn the Knights about the high tackles and interference as the home side attempted to slow the game down. Welham was being used as a battering ram down the left side, Grimshaw and Kain linked well before a final pass back to Liam saw him dash through the York players and score. Minutes later Thomas Coyle dropped a goal that was meant to push his team mates to safety before having to leave the field with an injury. This game the biggest of the season for both teams York responded with a try as Ben Johnston proved unstoppable and flew over with just 13 minutes left to play. The Hawks suffered once again when Ben Johnston made it two this afternoon and increased his side’s points, narrowing the gap. The tension rose in the whole stadium as the game finished, the boys had against the odds showed once more that they were the team to beat.
The Hawks were certainly running into form late in the season and the win today pushed Barry’s side narrowly away from the bottom 2 places in the league. The Hawks travelling support had turned up in numbers and continue to support the boys as they go on to battle relegation.
A Thursday night fixture this week at Don Valley stadium to face top of the league Sheffield Eagles.
Hunslet RLFC Line up
1. Stuart Kain
Sponsored by: Beth Hampshire
2. Waine Pryce
Sponsored by: Yorkshire Signs
3. Lee Brickwood
Sponsored by: Eric Simon
4. Liam Welham
Sponsored by: Adrian Jinks
5. Lee Mapals
Sponsored by: Leeds Bacon Company Ltd
6. Thomas Coyle
Sponsored by: Yorkshire Signs
7. James Coyle
Sponsored by: Yorkshire Signs
8. Andrew Yates
Sponsored by: Village Urban Resorts South Leeds
9. David March
Sponsored by: A & R Construction
10. James Houston
Sponsored by: Stephen Bower Bespoke Joinery
11. Tommy Haughey
Sponsored by: Dawn Caley
12. John Oakes
Sponsored by: Leeds Bacon Company Ltd
13. Danny Grimshaw
14. Luke Haigh
Sponsored by: Elliott & Ewan Green
15. Jimmy Watson
16. Luke Menzies
Sponsored by: Fred & Jane Hopkins
17. Michael Haley
Timeline
00:20 Andrew Yates Try
00:23 Jimmy Watson Try
00:24 David March Goal
00:27 Thomas Coyle Try
00:33 David March Try
00:34 David March Goal
00:40 John Oakes Try
00:41 David March Goal
00:45 Liam Welham Try
00:46 Stuart Kain Goal
01:01 Thomas Coyle Drop goal