Beverley 6 Macclesfield 21

Macclesfield’s recent good run of results continued at Beaver Park on Saturday when they once more prevented a side scoring after the interval with a good defensive display to take the points which keep the squad still in the trenches behind enemy lines but contemplating the ‘Great Escape’.

The game began on a glorious but chilly afternoon in the East Riding and it only took a matter of seconds from kick off for Ross Winney to slot over a penalty after a Beverley infringement but the home side responded with a series of attacks and were perhaps unlucky not to score but lost ball or forward passes at the vital moments denied them points which they may well regret in the bigger picture of things.

As it was they leveled after 15 minutes when Ian Archibald slotted over an equalizing penalty but Winney hit his second just 8 minutes later to increase the lead after an offside decision after a rare Macclesfield visit to the Beverley half of the park.

As half time beckoned with the home side pressing in the Macclesfield 22 Blues Centre – Richard Hughes – intercepted a Beverley pass to outpace the chasing defence in an 80 metre chase to the posts with defenders gaining agonizingly close as he touched down. Winney added the two and at the break Macclesfield led by 13-6 after a half they scarcely dominated but when the opportunity came it was accepted and that was the difference between the sides.

Into first half injury time Macclesfield’s Jerry Bostock on his return to the side was binned for a professional foul and it meant that the Blues were on the back foot for ten minutes as the game resumed.

The second period began with Macclesfield exerting pressure in the Beverley half of the park but despite all the effort no points came despite Chris Jones almost scoring after a good break by Tom Davenport and it was mid way through the half when Winney dropped a goal to increase the lead (16-6) but still Beverley could have got back in the game but a promising attack was spoiled by a knock on.

Macclesfield were reduced once more mid way through the half when wing man Chris Jones got ten minutes in the bin for knocking the ball from the hands of a Beverley player looking to take a quick throw in and one wondered if discipline was going to prove an issue in the final outcome but in his absence the Blues held out and as the end of the game approached the elusive running of Ross Winney was troublesome for the home defence and after one such break the ball was recycled for Jones to make good his misadventure when he crashed through the Beverley defence to score Macclesfield’s second try and make the game safe. The conversion drifted wide but moments later the Blues celebrated their third successive victory and most likely condemned Beverley to North One next season.

Team: Latham, Allen, Collie, Bostock, Brocklehurst, Kerr, Baines & Hewitt. Rice, Winney, Jones, Hughes, Davenport, Barker, Mulchrone.

Bench: Moss, Lear, Harvey & Newell