Doncaster Rugby Club

Aireborough 23 Doncaster Phoenix 24

This Saturday saw a re-match of last years Yorkshire Four risers in a repeat where Phoenix were well and truly defeated on a cold winters day last season by a good forty points! Hence in a close and tense match the Doncaster outfit avenged their defeat courtesy of 23-24 win.

This week saw Kaihau back at tight-head, Nick Germaine returning at No.8 and Harrison coming in for Roodt in the scheme to rotate the backs.

With the sun to their backs Phoenix started the match lively enough with pack picking up where they left off the week prior proving strong up front and in the loose.

It was however the home side that struck blood first courtesy of their useful backs who created space for the left winger to go over in the corner for a 5-0 advantage.

Phoenix were quick to reciprocate courtesy of a miss move in the middle that allowed Burton to come from the wing through the centre to crash under the sticks with Millar adding the conversion.

Phoenix’s strength in this game was their ability to keep possession and starve the home backs of ball, who looked dangerous with ball in hand. This they did well and couldn’t impact their lead when awarded two penalties.

If the impetus wasn’t going to come from the boot Millar added to it by receiving the ball central and dancing through the centre to touch down under the post and also convert his try- 14-5. He then did find success and took the visiting sides tally in the first half to 17.

The home side didn’t let lie though and they reduced the deficit to two by running in two tries one from a slick handling move and the other when their speedy young winger picked up in his own twenty two and zigged-zagged his way turning a seventy yard straight run into a 100 yard by the path he took never the less if left the score 17-15 on the break.

Almost immediately from the start the home backs got their hand on the ball and produced a superb move to allow the centre a gap to run though and touch down in the right hand corner.  Aire then further increased their advantage by knocking over a penalty to take it to 23-17.

For the remaining twenty minutes Phoenix forwards then took the impetus and went out to starve the home side of ball and were dominant in the scrum, and were unlucky when the ref adjudged the pack to infringe when the line was beckoning.

Not to be put off they kept possession and were duly rewarded when Morris collected close out to breach the line with Millar keeping his head to knock the kick over to take a 24-23 lead.

The last minutes were tense but the workman like Phoenix pack kept possession to finish the game off.

This was a rewarding day in stark contrast to last season’s encounter and with the Phoenix pack dominating it allowed the platform for the backs to compete against competent and enterprising opposition.