There was plenty of entertaining rugby on show for Northallerton RUFC as the men’s first XV hosted local side Ripon RUFC in what has often been a close fought encounter at the Lodge. A short drive up into the Dales went the men’s second XV who faced their own local rivals in Richmondshire RUFC second XV in their first competitive outing this season. The club’s U16s boys took to the field on Sunday to
face the tough task of Otley RUFC in their opening fixture of the season at the Lodge.

The men’s second XV have so far faced difficulties in fielding a team, a feat repeated across many clubs of late. However, with the sun shining and the ground softening, a full squad with substitutes went up to face Shire. North started proceedings quickly with a fast counterattack after gathering a loose ball inside their own 22-metre area. A combination of fast hands and even faster feet saw debutant flanker Andrew Fleming and winger Luke Stockdale link up to weave their way past numerous tackles before Stockdale grounded the ball over the line for the opening try of the game. Scrumhalf Ben Gray was successful with the conversion to add the extras. Straight off the restart North looked to keep asserting their dominance and after several scrums in their own half, flyhalf Doug Mulholland put in a long kick that gained North an attacking platform close to the Shire goal line. From the resulting lineout it was second row Pete Barraclough who drove the ball over the line to extend North’s lead. Richmondshire were keen to show that they could play the fast game too as they mopped up a loose Northallerton pass and put it through the hands of their backs to score a retaliatory try which was followed with the conversion. Following the restart, it was the hosts who jumped straight back into gear and retained possession to drive the ball down the field and score another well taken converted try to take the lead.
It would have been understandable for North to lose momentum after the two quick tries from the hosts however, the grit that teams at North have shown so far this season shone through again. The lads gave each other a strong talking to under the posts set about winning the ball back with aggressive defence. Having regained possession, the forward pack drove and mauled it towards the Shire end. Kody Bennington had the last touch and made sure to ground the ball to ensure North held the lead going into the halftime interval.
The second half began with an intensity akin to the first. A quick line out by Richmondshire inside their own 22-metre area caught everyone including their own players by surprise. With the ball on the deck it was veteran Joe Hargreaves who reacted quickest and pounced on the ball and drove towards the line despite the attention and efforts of several defenders. North were beginning to regain the momentum and it wasn’t too long before Owen Spencer showed his strength by powering over the line with the ball from the back of a series of well-constructed phases by the North forward pack. This afforded the visitors a bit of breathing space on the score board. However, just as the game began to look comfortable for the away side, Shire kicked back into life and scored a pair of quick tries out of broken field play that brought them right back into contention with only a point separating the sides. The onslaught from Shire continued for the remaining quarter of the match in search of the winning try. The monumental defensive effort required to keep the hosts out looked to be taking its toll on North as a yellow card for repeated infringements reduced the defenders to fourteen with minutes remaining. In the last throws of the game Shire were camped in the North half and hammering on the door before the ball was turned over at the breakdown. The resulting box kick to clear the lines from Ben Gray looked to have run too long over but the bounce of a rugby ball has surprised many before and did so once again. Stopping unexpectedly in the in-goal area, everyone had given it up as a lost cause except for hooker Jack Symes who charged after it and grounded the ball to score the try that sealed the win for North. The game finished with a final score Richmondshire 26 – Northallerton 32. Man of the match was awarded to Kody Bennington for his hard work in the scrums. A huge thank you to Richmondshire RUFC for their generous hospitality, to the referee for officiating the game and to all the faithful supporters who travelled to cheer on the lads.
For the men’s first XV, their game kicked off and early signs were promising for the hosts. They turned over possession quickly off the kick off and through the scrum and laid siege to the Ripon try line for several phases of play. A slip of the ball at the crucial point meant that the opening score eluded North’s grasp and from the change of possession the visitors showed why they have had such a good start to the season. Moving the ball fluidly through the forwards and the backs they worked up the slope and deep into North territory. Their composure was maintained and despite some desperate defending from the hosts the game’s first try was scored. The demoralising effect this turn around had on North was significant and what followed next was a flurry of tries from Ripon who have started the season with several impressive wins. This attacking mindset was on show for the many supporters of both sides. Playing from any part of the field they found space to exploit, and it wasn’t long before the next try was scored in the corner off the back of carries from the forwards. The next try scored was a moment to savour for the visitor’s scrum half. Camped in the North 22-metre they were struggling to make the breakthrough, resolute defending from the hosts was keeping them out. Spotting a gap behind the ruck he dinked a little chip over the defence and snuck around the pile of bodies to regather his kick and dot the ball down for a personal highlight try.
Throughout the remainder of the first half the game continued at a high tempo as both sides sought to attack the spaces afforded by the wide pitch and dry conditions. Ripon were able to gather another two tries to their tally, one from their centre who sidestepped his way past several tacklers to score under the posts. The conversion was added. Their last try of the half was another effort from the pack who drove the ball with patience and precision into the North territory, then over the try line. The hosts were only able to pick up a yellow card for repeated offences as they tried to stem the tide of attacks. Both sides went into the half time break facing drastically different situations as the score stood 0-27.
The game resumed and North returned to the fray with renewed vigour. A series of silky offloads from the front row forwards no less brought the ball up to the Ripon 5-metre line. Then, showing a patience that had deserted them in the opening minutes, the home side’s forwards set to work churning through the last few metres before winger Josh Barratt cut a hard line off the back of the ruck and crashed through several defenders to score. For the next quarter of the match North proceeded to play with a determination and confidence that would have borne fruit had it been present in the first half. Their defence was rock solid as they repelled numerous Ripon attacks whilst the attack began to flow with more fluidity. Equal to it though were the Ripon defenders who prevented North from capitalising on this spell of possession and kept their tally at the solitary try. Heading into the last ten minutes of the game it looked as though North had rescued some pride despite the scoreline. Ripon, however, had other ideas and stepped up their accuracy and speed of play to score another try again in the corner making for a difficult conversion which the fullback kicked to add the extras. A penultimate try followed soon after from the visiting forward pack as the wind dissipated from the Northallerton sails before the Ripon scrumhalf rounded off the game with a second piece of individual brilliance. Taking a quick tap penalty on the halfway line he sprinted past the retreating defenders and showed quick feet to sidestep the remaining tacklers and score with the last play of the game. The match ended with a final score Northallerton 5 – Ripon 46. A well natured and entertaining game that enthralled the large crowd gathered to watch. A big thank you to the referee who officiated the game, to Ripon and their supporters who travelled in such good numbers and to all the many volunteers at the club who helped make the day happen.

The U16s began their season with a tough test against Otley RUFC, a club with a tradition of producing strong junior teams. North played well in large parts of the game, particularly around the rucks and in the tackle, showing that it was not for lack of heart of commitment that the score board moved away from them. This game seemed to serve as a grounding experience for the boys but will serve them well throughout the rest of the season against more reasonable opposition. Many positive signs of encouragement for the team as a whole who will be sure to enjoy the season to come. The game finished with a final score of Northallerton 5 – Otley 73. Many thanks to the referee for officiating the match, to Otley for travelling with such good support and to all the parents and supporters who helped make the day happen.