West welcomed back Stephen Short, but Chris Lambert was still suffering from the injury received the previous week, and Jon Norris reported ill before the game. Harrogate similarly had players absent, but both sides still provided a good crowd with sustained entertainment.

Harrogate had the early pressure, but West defended well, and gradually began to gain the upper hand. Both sets of defences were proving strong however, and, with the game disrupted by a run of penalties, neither side could create clear scoring opportunities. It was going to take either a flash of genius or a mistake to break the deadlock, and it proved to be the latter when Harrogate mishandled after winning their own throw, allowing West flanker Tom Barker to grab the ball and surge over the line. Tom Dixon converted well, and West went in at half-time with a 7-0 lead.

Harrogate came out attacking right from the start of the second half, and proceeded to dominate possession, restricting West to counter attacks. West’s defence has always been a strength, and the team proved their resilience by resisting the constant Harrogate pressure. The Yorkshire team attacked with flair for 20 minutes, but failed to penetrate, and West responded with their own spell of pressure. Penalties conceded, however, again allowed Harrogate to push deep into West’s half, and in an incident similar to West’s try, Harrogate pulled a try back. This time West won from their own scrum close to the line, but possession was conceded and, with five minutes left, Harrogate flanker managed to plunge over the line to set up a tense finish. The conversion was missed, and West managed to play out the final few minutes in the Harrogate half, to earn a hard-fought victory and retain their 100% record.

Next week sees a break from the League, as West host Gosforth, the Northumberland Champions, in an 11 o’clock kick-off. The League then restarts the following week with an away match at Middlesbrough.