Despite the relative league positions we matched the visitors in every department and after last week’s heavy defeat to West Leeds it was a welcome return to making Brinkburn a hard place for teams to take points from.

Gavin Painter opened the scoring with a long range penalty after just 4 minutes but Driffield wing Ben Dinsdale answered with a penalty of his own after a period of pressure from the visitors. Painter had another easier chance which slid wide but after spending most of the opening 15 minutes on the back foot we began to grow into the game and build some pressure in the Driffield half. Two kickable penalties were turned down in favour of kicking to the corner but despite sustained possession we couldn’t break down the sturdy visiting defensive line.

Finally we got our reward with 8 minutes to go in the first half. A rare gap appeared in the Driffield defence and Gavin Painter nipped through it, laying off the final pass nicely for Alex Barker to score. Painter also added the conversion for a 10-3 lead.

That lead was to be short-lived though. We spilled possession from the resulting kick-off and Driffield worked the ball up-field, eventually scoring through flanker Harrison Dodds after a neat close quarters off-load from scrum-half Craig Gray. Dinsdale failed to add the conversion leaving a narrow 10-8 West lead at the half-time break.

It took only 5 minutes in the second half for Dinsdale to put his side in-front for the first time with a penalty for not releasing the tackled player. Despite the setback we bounced back well and after a loose Driffield lineout was snaffled by Scott Butcher we were camped on the visiting line. Wing Joe Robinson raced out of the line to attempt an intercept but he was clearly offside and was despatched to the sin-bin. We continued to press and after several surges for the line it was Painter who eventually twisted his way over for the try.

Driffield were far from done though and they went back into the lead with their best passage of play in the match on 64 minutes.  First the forwards took a clean lineout and rolled a maul deep into the West half and then a slick backs move was finished off by the returning Robinson, just back on the field prior to the lineout being taken. Dinsdale added the conversion.

Trailing by three points we went in search of a winning try but despite coming close we couldn’t add the much needed score. Rob Thorn twice went close up the right wing but his chip ahead on the first occasion was well covered and at the second time of asking he kept the ball in hand only to be bundled into touch by the last defender.

A gutsy effort by the whole team deserved more and a tremendous defensive effort couldn’t quite be matched in attack with too many crucial passes going to ground or just missing their intended targets. With only 2 of the remaining 7 games left at home and our away form so poor it is looking like an uphill struggle to avoid dropping into the relegation zone.

West: Southern, Tyers, Hilditch, Youll, Thorn, G Painter, R Painter, Coates, Rollins, Key, Rafferty, Linighan, Bunter, Barker, Butcher, Turner.
Reps: Hunter, Brown, Willis

Tries: Barker, G Painter
Con: G Painter
Pen: G Painter

Driffield: Piercy, Dinsdale, Stephenson, Dench, Robinson, Dearing, Gray, Blenkinsop, Brumfield, Zavatti, Douglas, Cooper, R Mewburn, Dodds, Burns.
Reps: G Mewburn, Murray, Watt

Tries: Dodds, Robinson
Con: Dinsdale
Pens: Dinsdale 2
YC: Robinson

Referee: Alex Mackinder