Selby RUFC 27 v 14 Heath RUFC

Report by Ian Marlow

Selby’s recent upturn in form continued as they avenged their away thrashing at Heath by downing the league high-flyers in a tense and pulsating return fixture at Sandhill Lane. While Selby’s much improved performance may have been somewhat of a surprise to the uninvolved onlooker, and even Heath themselves, those in the know about recent coaching and player developments at the club will know that this was no fluke.

The change in mood and anticipation was set before kick off with the welcome return from fields afar of several experienced, not to mention excellent, players to the Selby fold and all played a major part in the day’s proceedings. With the breeze behind them Heath started strongly and with their massive pack they battered the Selby line for several minutes - but Selby have a renewed resolve, no better demonstrated than by a superb try saving tackle by winger Ben Lunt, and they held on until Heath transgressed and the ball was cleared. Selby then gave warning of their own attacking threat as the big, and veteran, Rob Taylor made the first of a number of strong breaks which was then supported through a number of phases before Danny Wilkinson finished the move off for a super team try.

Selby then were guilty, as is their usual wont, of pushing passes and losing a number of possessions and from one of these a clever reverse kick from the Heath fly-half wasn’t dealt with allowing their winger to score under the posts. Back on the attack came Selby through Taylor again, backed up by thumping runs from the monstrous Martin Protheroe and hefty Duncan Hardy and when possession was retained and recycled Wilkinson cleverly fed the charging Millar McCoy, running a great inside line, to score another fine try. Unfortunately, instead of kicking on and keeping the pressure on, Selby became their own worst enemy as they again failed to deal with a speculative Heath punt up-field, allowing them a foothold from which they showed their own recycling ability to cross to level the scores again just before half time.

With the breeze behind them for the second half Selby were favourites for the win but Heath, as their league position shows, are a good side and with their huge but somewhat portly pack failing to show any half-expected lack of fitness, the whole half became a tense battle of attrition as the West Yorkshiremen held the lion’s share of possession and territory. Fortunately for Selby, Scott Hunt had managed to pack his kicking boots this week and when Heath were penalised following a rare break out from Selby, the rangy fly-half put over an excellent and much needed penalty to restore the lead. And more was to follow as following yet another break from Taylor a Heath high tackle resulted in another three points to Selby and Hunt and a slightly harsh yellow card for his otherwise excellent Heath counterpart.

With still less than a score ahead Selby became nervous and while their forwards continued to excel, with the returning Matthew Wood bolstering their efforts magnificently from the sub’s bench, the backs struggled for cohesion allowing Heath to remain in contention. So it was some relief when Wilkinson executed a perfect blindside kick to win a line out on the Heath line from which a cute move sent hooker Mark Tanner over for the try, superbly converted by Hunt from out wide for a 27-14 lead with only fifteen minutes to play. However, the tension remained as Heath responded by upping their efforts to dominate the rest of the match and, with Protheroe sin binned for repeated infringements, only some frantic Selby defence combined with a final pass knock on from Heath with the line begging preventing any further scores before the final whistle was blown for a magnificent Selby win.

Selby’s Yorkshire One league survival remains precarious but with the recent green shoots of recovery put in place by interim coaches Steve Cruise and Richard Nicholson, with admirable back up from other longstanding clubmen, now starting to bear fruit with two wins from the last three games, they can go into the final crucial fixtures of the season with renewed optimism for a more favourable outcome. Selby travel to highly placed Beverley next for what will be another very difficult fixture.