Defeat leaves the Hornets rock bottom
ROCHDALE Hornets ended the regular Championship season with a defeat as they came up short against Halifax at the Shay.
Three tries in five minutes from Simon Grix, Jacob Fairbank and Chester Butler put Halifax in the driving seat, with Steve Tyrer, Kieren Moss and Ben Kaye adding further scores to complete the win and ensure Halifax sealed their place in the qualifiers.
Chances were limited in the opening stages as both sides completed their sets early on.
Halifax went closest when Kaye raced towards the try line, but he was held up by the Hornets defence.
The home side started to build momentum, and they were given a golden opportunity to take the lead when Richard Lepori was forced into touch after taking Ben Johnston’s kick.
From the resulting scrum, Fairbank produced a fantastic off-load to Grix, who crossed for the opener for Halifax. Tyrer added the conversion from in front of the posts to take full advantage.
That early try gave Halifax a boost and they found themselves in again moments later.
A penalty saw them back on the attack, Fairbank to race through and score to increase his team’s lead.
Hornets were struggling to compete with their opponents during this period and things got even worse for them when the hosts scored another try.
Ben Heaton broke through the line before finding Butler, who shrugged off the Hornets defenders and touched down.
Following that frantic five minutes, Hornets regained their composure and created chances of their own, but they were struggling to break through the Halifax defence.
They couldn’t get on the scoresheet in the first half despite their best efforts, and Halifax made sure they had the final say when Tyrer crossed the line just before the break.
He added the conversion himself to put his side 22-0 ahead at halftime.
As it’s been shown on plenty of occasions this season, Hornets continued to work hard despite trailing by a big margin, and their hard work was rewarded at the start of the second half when Lewis Hatton forced his way over the try line on 43 minutes.
Tyler Whittaker added the extras.
Despite a penalty for the hosts from Tyrer, Rochdale remained the better side as the second half progressed, with Joe Ryan, Hatton and Lepori all going close to scoring, but strong Halifax defending denied them.
Halifax got back on top in the closing stages, with Moss scoring after good work from Butler, before Kaye crossed late on to add another try.
There were late opportunities for Hornets for Joe Taira and Will Sharp, but just like they had done throughout the rest of the match, Halifax defended well and kept them out.
The home side put the finishing touches on their win when Tyrer scored a late penalty as the match finished 38-6 to Halifax.
It means that Hornets finished bottom of the table in the regular season, and will now compete against Featherstone, Leigh, Batley, Sheffield, Swinton, Dewsbury and Barrow in the Championship Shield.
Hornets continued to work hard despite trailing by a big margin, and were rewarded