This weekend witnessed an impressive win for the ladies’ first XV against Acklam Hurricanes in front of a bumper crowd who attended the first sponsor’s lunches the club has held before a ladies’ game. The Saturday had the men’s first XV get back on the road to play at Hemsworth RUFC, searching for that still elusive first win of the season.

A sponsor’s lunch before a game has been a longstanding tradition held several times a season at Northallerton, as often happens at many rugby clubs. It has taken until now though for one to be held at North in front of a ladies’ match and, having been very well attended will certainly become a staple fixture going forward. The teams came out in front a large crowd of supporters, who were pleased that the wind and rain had subsided to allow for an enjoyable spectating experience. Straight from the kick off it was clear that every player was fired up and keen for the match. North spared no time in setting about their game plan of carrying hard in the forwards and then looking for space out wide. Ali O’Brien was put into space early inside her own half and took to the outside of the defence before kicking through when the cover
came across. From the resulting ruck, captain Abby Robinson chose to go down the blind side and barged her way through two defenders to score the opening try of the game.
The pressure from North was relentless on Acklam as the hosts continued to stretch the defence from one side of the pitch to the other. There was no lack of heart about the visitors defending, more that one this day North were able to fully demonstrate the discipline and organisation worked on in training. The host’s next try came courtesy of the electric winger Wiktoria Johnson who found a small pocket of space in the outside channel and put on the afterburners to leave all others in her wake before grounding the ball over the try line. O’Brien kicked the conversion to add the extras. A spell of defending was required for the hosts as Acklam managed to wrest control of the game briefly into their hands. Their scrum power was proving their most effective weapon as they established an early dominance up front and compounded this by making ground with their forward’s carrying. Not to be deterred from playing expansively, when North did manage to win possession back after enduring the Acklam assaults, the ball was quickly moved through the hands and out to Johnson again who repeated the same feat, this time throwing in a few side steps on the way and grounded the ball under the posts for her second try and afforded O’Brien an easy conversion. O’Brien then managed to get in on the try scoring action just before the half time break by rounding several defenders after a lengthy period of possession from Northallerton. This took North into the half time interval with a healthy lead of 24-0.

The rest took none of the intensity out of the game and both teams threw themselves straight back into the melee. Clearly deciding that the backs were having too much of the limelight, the forwards took hold of the ball and kept it tight from the kick off, working it through phase after phase to muscle it close enough to the line that eventually, the power of prop Amy Pointon proved the difference, and she carried it through the last defenders and over the try line. O’Brien added the extras. In contrast to the ever-widening gap on the scoreboard, much of the game was closely contested in a fierce but fair manner, punctuated by moments of excellence from North. Acklam were continuing to use their power up front to gain field position on several occasions but were unable to maintain possession long enough to score the points that would have brought them back into the game. North, on the other hand, made the most of any opportunity and this was demonstrated most clearly but second row and eventual player of the match Cara Williams who, reacting quickest to a penalty given the host’s way in the middle of the pitch, took the quick tap and charged off down the slope, weaving in and out of defenders and showing an unusual but very helpful turn of pace for a lock forward to score her first try of the game.
This moment seemed to take some of the wind out of the sails of Acklam’s resistance as, leading up to it there had been a lengthy spell of solid defending from them. North were quick to take advantage though and picked up the tempo and brought into play their offloading game. Silky hands from all players put Robinson into space again and she charged towards the line, only being stopped just ten yards short but finding support in the form of replacement centre Emily McCormack who timed her run nicely to take the ball without breaking stride and drive through the final defender to score the try. Flyhalf Trinity Earnshaw had played an excellent game all afternoon, controlling the play and unselfishly putting people into the right spaces at the right time. When the opportunity in the visitor’s 22-metre area arose however, she threw a big left footed step and cut back against the grain to scythe through the defence and swan dive over the line for a thoroughly deserved try under the posts from which O’Brien added the conversion.
O’Brien has been a consistent and stand out performer for North for many years now but had a moment to forget and one that assured supporters and opposition alike that she is only human after all. Waiting patiently in the back line as the forwards set about another series of phases driving into the Acklam half, when the ball did come out to her, O’Brien threw the smoothest of dummies to send the defence the wrong way before gliding through and, in the act of putting the ball down under no pressure at all, fumbled it forward over the line, much to the amusement of the opposition players. Thankfully this will surely do little to harm O’Brien’s points tally for the season or her try scoring ability which is always a pleasure to watch for any spectator.
North weren’t finished yet though, Williams latched onto another spell of North possession to showcase her strength to match her speed this time, driving over from close range through several defenders to score her second try of the game which O’Brien converted. Any spectator would have forgiven Acklam for losing some level of desire for the game well before this point as the scoreboard had moved well beyond them. In defiant style though they stuck to their game plan and managed to finally take advantage of their forward power to score their only try of the game, driving the ball through the forwards using their bigger runners to great effect to get the ball grounded over the line and put themselves on the score sheet. A consolation try only but an important reward to recognise the hard work and determination they had shown throughout the game. The last say of the match though went to North and in particular replacement winger Josie Arthur who popped up with impeccable timing to accept an offload and then carry two defenders with her over the try line in the last play of the game to score the final try of the game. The match finished with a score line that read Northallerton 60 – Acklam Hurricanes 5. A thoroughly entertaining fixture that players and supporters all seemed to enjoy. A big thank you to the referee for officiating, to Acklam for travelling with great numbers and to all the many supporters and volunteers at the club who helped make the day happen.

The men’s first XV took the road and made the trip down to Hemsworth RUFC, a team that North haven’t played for several seasons now. It was a team loaded with experience that North fielded on this day, several players stepping out of retirement to help the cause. Both sides find themselves sitting at the bottom of Yorkshire 2 league currently which added an extra element to the game. North started the game positively and were undeterred by the physical defence of the home side. The try scoring commenced early and saw both sides have a opening try disallowed for a forward pass at the end. This set the tone for what would go on to be a free scoring game. Having had a try chalked off earlier on, Hemsworth took advantage of a penalty in front of the posts to kick the three points and put themselves first on the scoreboard. This opened the door to a flurry of tries from the hosts and repeated a pattern that has become a regular occurrence for North, that of allowing a team to build a lead early before attempting to chase it down. It was late into the first half before North were able to wrestle control of the game back into their hands. A spell of possession that drew the defence in tight allowed space out wide to be exploited and it was winger Josh Barrett who made the most of the opportunity to score in the corner. This provided the lift North needed and they set about reclaiming possession of the restart and pushing hard for their second try. The vast array of experience that North had brought in the front row paid off just before the interval as they won a scrum against the head and from the turnover, moved the ball down the line quickly to debutant winger Steve White who showed his pace and rounded the defence to score an impressive first try for the club. Ollie Walters kicked the conversion to add the extras and made sure that North went into the half time break with the comeback on and the scoreline reading 29-12.

The second half opened with some theatrics from Walters to get the crowd excited. A chip kick over the top of the defence seemed like a high-risk gamble until he gathered the ball expertly and raced away down field towards the goal line. If not for a late covering tackle he would have scored a try worthy of any highlight reel, thankfully fullback Tom Peacock was on hand to gather the offload and score the try. Walters kicked the conversion. Hemsworth seemed to feel the pressure growing on them as the home crowd saw their lead diminishing. In response to this they went back to the game plan that served them well at the start of the game, carrying hard and looking for offloads they found tiring defenders in front of them and spaces to run into. This again resulted in another flurry of tries that took the game beyond the reach of North. Grit and determination have continued to be a mainstay characteristic of this North team and it showed again as they continued to fight until
the very end of the match. In the closing minutes of the game, Barratt caught the ball in space and set off towards the goal line, powering through the two defenders in front of him he crashed over for his second try of the game and secure North’s consolation bonus point. Walters kicked the conversion again to add the extras. The visitor’s saved their best play until the last and executed a perfect training ground move off the back of a secure scrum that saw winger Ross Easdon glide through the defence untouched and dot down in the corner. The match finished with a final score of Hemsworth 48 – Northallerton 31.
Many thanks to Hemsworth for their generous hospitality, to the referee for officiating the match and to the many spectators who travelled to support the team. Congratulations to debutant Steve White on an impressive first performance with a try to boot. A special thanks should also go to Si Warren, Craig Nasby, Doug Mulholland and Ed Bulman who all donned their boots at short notice, some for the first time in years, to help out the team and ensure the fixture went ahead.

For any readers wanting to play rugby in Northallerton, the men train on Tuesday and Thursday 7pm, the ladies train Wednesday 7pm and the juniors play on Sundays 10am. All ages and abilities welcome. Please contact the club on social media for more information.