Stoppage time stunner earns Titans maiden league victory

ROTHERHAM sensationally won their first league match of the season after 13 consecutive defeats which have sent the Clifton Lane club hurtling towards National One.

Four minutes into added time with the scores locked at 24-24, full-back Caolan Ryan made himself the hero for Titans. Having not taken a place kick in the entire game, Ryan put over a dramatic penalty from an awkward angle into the wind to set off wild celebrations as Rotherham seized their first league victory.

Ryan said: “I wasn’t nervous because I didn’t realise it was me who would have to kick the penalty. I thought it would be Lee Millar, who’d done all the kicking, but then I saw him on the bench so I didn’t have a lot of time to think about it!

“It’s an honour to win the match, but this was a real team performance.

“All week we were looking at great comebacks in sport.We have self-belief and the team spirit has never been higher. The disappointments have brought us together.

“So far, after our two wins in the B&I Cup and now this, we are undefeated in 2018 and long may it continue.”

In a close contest and long before Ryan’s heroics, both sides had scored three tries each as the respective attacks were far stronger than defences at Clifton Lane.

Rotherham dominated the first half, scoring clever tries by wingers Will Thomas and Drew Cheshire, his sixth in the last six games, and Ryan who touched down just before the interval after intelligent approach work by Cheshire and scrum-half Rhodri Davies.

Pirates recovered and added to their try on 22 minutes from centre Nicolas de Battista as forwards Chris Morgan and Tom Duncan crashed over, the latter while down to 14 men following Tom Calladine’s yellow card for foul play.

Pirates led by 24-21, but in a thrilling finish they became careless as Rotherham struck two penalties – on 78 minutes by Millar and then deep into injury time from Ryan.

Pirates skipper Morgan said: “We had good field positions and didn’t capitalise and then we were in a position to win. We should have closed it out, but indiscipline cost us in the end.

“Credit to Rotherham, they had real fight in them.”