By Roger Baxter
York’s men’s rugby 2nds went down to an agonising one-point defeat against Durham yesterday afternoon on 22 Acres. In a match played under difficult, blustery conditions, York were simply too inconsistent in their play, which, coupled with several instances of bad luck, conspired to hand the victory to the visitors. The match was given a great atmosphere by a rather large crowd, presumably due to the fact that the opponents for the 1st XV, Liverpool, managed not to turn up at all, due to a broken-down coach. The 1sts offered to play later on under floodlights, but Liverpool refused, and so the crowd were left with what turned out to be a thrilling fixture.
Durham’s back line looked pacy from the off. Going through the phases in the opening few minutes, they managed to secure a penalty under the York posts, and subsequently open up a 3-0 lead. York seemed stung somewhat by going behind so early, and attacked vigourously. Some excellent running in the back line from Oliver Drake led to a useful attacking platform being set up, as well as multiple roarings of “Snake!” being bellowed on the touch-line. “Snake”‘s fleet-footed insurgency proved its worth when it led to a York try. From a scrum won at the 5m line, the quick thinking of Niall Walsh led to an overlap on the blindside, and Will Ward duly offloaded for the winger to make it 5-3 in front of his own fans.
After a narrowly missed conversion from Drake, it was Durham’s turn to set up camp in the York half. The home side, however, were far more disciplined at the breakdown, with a multitude of turnover ball coming their way. Some wonderful tackling was also in evidence, particularly from the likes of Rishi Naidoo, Michael Ager, and the rest of York’s pack. Towards the end of the half, however, the 2nds’ discipline seemed to evaporate. After conceding a rare penalty, converted to make it 6-5, Sam Morrison, propelled by fury at his side’s having gone behind again, went into a tackle using his shoulder rather than his arms, and was sin-binned for his trouble. York, while they suffered a horrific injury to Ben Turner which left a hefty chunk of bone poking out of his hand, looked on the point of lasting the entire ten minutes a man down without losing any ground, but, right at its end, could not prevent Durham going over for an unconverted try in the corner. The half ended 11-5, with many thinking that York would use the wind to their advantage in the second period to post a victory.
What transpired was rather different. Durham posted wave after wave of attacking plays, the ball almost never leaving the York half, except for a penalty, coolly converted to make it 11-8. When, however, a Durham player was himself sent to the bin with just over ten minutes remaining in the game, York perked up, and began to besiege their opposition’s try-line. The push however, looked like it had come to naught, particularly when a Durham penalty made the score 14-8.
Finally, though, the fans had something to cheer about. A quick break led to the establishment of another York beachhead near Durham’s line, and this time it was converted; phase upon phase of pick-and-drive finally being rewarded with Rishi Naidoo powering over near the touch-line. There was little time left, and so the match’s outcome hung on Walsh’s conversion. It slipped inches to one side of the post, handing an exultant Durham the victory. York, however, performed well against a side currently topping their division, and must feel confident going of securing a high position in the table going into the rest of the season.
