Playing into the wind in the first half, Otley kept the game simple with scrum-half Guy Easterby aiming some probing kicks down the short side. Unfortunately though, the strong wind assisting the accurate boot of Cambridge fly-half Gareth Cull meant that Otley would return to their own half at every available opportunity.

Otley's defensive patterns stood firm for the first quarter before Cambridge's right winger Paul Kendall raced in from 25 metres out having benefitted from an overlap. Cull's conversion attempt had the direction but fell just short.

Otley's cage was rattled and they were quick to hit back. Outside centre Jon Buchanan made the initial break just inside the Cambridge half before offloading in the tackle to the supporting Alistair Monks. Monks carried on the movement before offloading in a similar fashion to winger Steve Parsons. Parsons surged into the 22 before threading the third consecutive pass out of the tackle to the onrushing Shuttleworth who sliced between the posts for a breathtaking score. Shuttleworth converted his own score to make it 7-5 to Otley.

Otley spent the remainder of the first half defending in their own half as the strong wind continued to blow. Cull made no mistake with two well struck penalty attempts to give his side a 7-11 lead at half-time which never looked like being enough with Otley about to turn round and play with the elements.

Otley's tactical kicking game continued to impress in the second half and the hosts were soon deep inside opposition territory. Deliberate killing of the ball saw a Cambridge player sent to the sin-bin and Shuttleworth stroked over the penalty to bring Otley to within a point after 45 minutes.

One booming kick later and Otley were back in the danger zone. Hooker Scott Plevey, who is performing admirably since his loan move from Doncaster, could consider him unlucky not to have been awarded a try following good work by the pack which saw a pile up of bodies over the Cambridge line. He was not to be denied shortly after when breaking from the side of a rolling maul to crash over in the corner. Shuttleworth shaved the upright with the conversion attempt but Otley now led 15-11 and had the game by the scruff of the neck.

Otley's third try came from an excellent piece of play from Easterby who took on the Cambridge defence down the blindside 30 metres from the line. Having sold an outrageous dummy, he slipped through a gap untouched before drawing the full-back with a well-timed pass for Shuttleworth to collect and race round behind the posts. Shuttleworth converted to make it 22-11 to Otley.

Otley did not rest on their laurels as they went in search of the bonus point try. Following more powerful work by the forwards, the ball was transferred to the left where excellent handling from replacement backrower Xavier Andre saw left winger Danny Smith go in at the corner for his 9th try of the season. Otley led 27-11 after 65 minutes and the bonus point was in the bag.

Otley continued to attack in fading light and looked like they were going to add to their lead when a loose ball was collected by Kendall who sprinted away before linking up with his captain James Shanahan who scored in the corner. Cull converted excellently from the touchline and Cambridge sniffed at least a losing bonus point at 27-18 with 5 minutes remaining.

Otley looked to rebuild a bigger gap in the scoreline and the pack duly rumbled towards the Cambridge line once again. Plevey crashed through the ruck to touchdown but the referee had already set off to award a penalty try as Cambridge had ielegally hauled down the driving maul. Shuttleworth converted to make it 34-18 to Otley.

The last action of the match saw Cambridge register a consolation score. Scrum-half Tim Ferrari took a quick tap penalty before slinging a wide pass to replacement winger Phil Reed who raced in at the corner flag. Cull converted with another well struck kick at goal but it was all too late for the visitors as Otley ran out deserved 34-25 winners in a match where the spectators were entertained despite the cold and blustery conditions.

Otley have a week off from League action as they look forward to hosting Kendal in the EDF Energy Trophy 3rd Round this coming Saturday. The following weekend sees a clash with Blackheath as the league campaign nears the halfway stage.

Otley: Shuttleworth (capt); Parsons, Buchanan, Mooney, Smith (Dench 70); Monks, Easterby; Trethewey (Wederall 65), Steele (Plevey 15), Fullman; Snowball, Williams; Tiffany, Bland, Stockdale

Cambridge: Fielden, Kendall, Barnard, Shanahan (capt), Lombard, Cull, Ferrari, Laws, Otter, Kirkman, Harlock, Kolakowski, Blom, Ball, Remnant

Referee: Terry Hall (RFU)

MATCH STATISTICS

Otley 34

Tries: Shuttleworth (2), Plevey, Smith, Penalty Try

Cons: Shuttleworth (3)

Pens: Shuttleworth

Cambridge 25

Tries: Kendall, Shanahan, Reed

Cons: Cull (2)

Pens: Cull (2)

Click here for photos of the match courtesy of Paul Barrett

Click here for individual league records