BEVERLEY  22    STOCKPORT  27

                Beverley’s unbeaten home league record stretching back nearly four years came to an end with a lacklustre performance in this end of season game in which nothing was at stake for either side.  Stockport deserved to win.  They were everything that Beverley were not; they kept their discipline, they tried to play constructive rugby throughout, and in full back Mike Hopkinson they had, after Beverley’s David Worrall, the game’s outstanding player. 

                On a fast dry pitch Beverley persisted with a kicking game which got them nowhere.  Indeed for most of the match they seemed determined to prevent their wingers getting the ball which seldom, if ever, got beyond the inside centre.  After early Stockport pressure Beverley began to settle and should have gone ahead after five minutes but Jade Gardiner, with Umberto Cuozzo outside him and a clear run to the line, opted instead to throw  a wild pass infield over his shoulder to no-one in particular and the chance went begging. 

                Ian Archibald with a penalty eventually opened the scoring after twenty minutes and then converted a try touched down by Mark Hatfield when the pack drove over.  Stockport were almost immediately back in it when Beverley lost possession as they tried to break out of defence and Stockport centre Ben Kerr sprinted over for a try which Hopkinson converted.  A penalty by Hopkinson brought Stockport level and the half ended with James McKay being yellow carded when the referee’s patience with persistent back-chat finally ran out. 

                The second half had hardly started before Stockport were in the lead.  They went for touch rather than take three easy penalty points and from the resulting lineout their pack drive over for a try scored by lock Paul Ralph and converted by Hopkinson.  Beverley’s back play and most of their kicking was pretty inept throughout and it increasingly became obvious that if they were going to win this game the outstanding Worrall would probably have to do it on his own.  A moment of magic brought him a try from thirty metres out, which Archibald converted to bring them level, and he nearly repeated it soon after with a tremendous fifty metres run out of his own half.

                It was Stockport however, who regained the lead with another Hopkinson penalty as Beverley continued to splutter along.  There was precious little to enthuse their supporters, and  the loudest noise of the afternoon was the ironic cheers afforded to the referee, Simon Lazenby, on the rare occasions that a penalty decision did not go against Beverley.  A determined forward drive brought a try in the corner for McKay to edge Beverley back into the lead and their unbeaten home record at least looked to have been secured.  

                But with the game entering its last minute Beverley crowned a day of poor decision making by going for touch instead of taking three points from an easily kickable penalty.  They promptly lost the ball and Stockport winger Don Eccles raced clear for a winning try which Hopkinson converted.  Although little was at stake here Beverley will have to raise themselves for their crucial promotion playoff match in a fortnight’s time and they will certainly need to sort out the idiot whose ill mannered booing from the touchline at opposition place kicks again brought discredit to the club.