Rovers’ revenge
ROCHDALE Hornets came up against a Featherstone Rovers side who didn’t give them an inch on Sunday, as the away side exacted revenge for their defeat earlier in the season with a 38-8 win.
When facing a side of Rovers’ quality you can’t afford to throw away possession, and the little possession the hosts had was surrendered far too easily.
They were made to work for every yard and at times the visitors’ defence became a blue wall which refused to budge, penning their opponents inside their own half for long periods.
There was an improvement in the second half however Featherstone had already done the hard work in a blistering first half performance, and Jon Sharp’s men could have had one eye on Thursday’s cup clash with Halifax.
A poor start was an indication of what was to come as Hornets conceded after just five minutes, with Misi Taulapapa sending Joshua Hardcastle over for the opening score with an inside ball, punishing an uncharacteristic error from Gary Middlehurst.
Anthony Thackeray found a gap in the defence soon after from what looked like an obstruction, before sending Ian Hardman over in support for a converted effort.
A knock on from the kick off set saw the hosts given their first real chance to attack and they took full advantage as Jordan Case put a perfectly weighted kick towards the corner where Miles Greenwood pounced.
They almost went backto-back as Jo Taira and Matty Hadden offloaded in the same tackle which led to Jake Eccleston breaking down the left edge, and Danny Yates looked certain to finish the break only to be caught high by the retreating Thackeray with the try line beckoning.
The penalty was awarded however the referee decided not to sin bin the Rovers halfback, and Josh Crowley knocked on from the first play.
Chances were few and far between so Ben Moores took it upon himself to try and snatch a try from dummy half, but in his attempt to ground the ball he knocked on.
Then, on the half hour mark the lead was extended by the visitors when Chris Riley was caught by a boot when going low to collect a kick, and with the fullback flat out and play-on called Michael Knowles scooped up the ball to score with no-one holmes.
Riley left the field for a concussion assessment and wouldn’t return until the second half, with Scott Turner picking up a quickfire double to round off the first period.
His first was simple hands which ended in him crossing in the left corner, with his second coming from a clever kick from Thackeray as he spotted space behind the defence for the winger to make it 28-4 with the last play of the half.
The second half started as the first half ended, with Hardman racing through the defensive line from an inside ball before the supporting Ricky Wildie crossed for a converted try.
Taulapapa then took things from bad to worse for the hosts as he came charging onto Hardcastle’s drop-off, proving too strong from close range.
Rochdale finally crossed soon after, with great footwork from Yates leading to him touching down only for the referee to chalk it off with a bemusing crossing call.
The quality of the contest dipped in the latter stages as the cue was placed on the rack by the