Keighley Under 9’s v Ilkley Under 9’s at Keighley - 21st March 2010

Squad
Jack Rodborne
Harry Gould
James Field
Tom Richardson
Will Halliday
Zac Scott
Joseph Myers
Keir Welch
Aaron Wilson
Joss McArthur
Lennon Curr
Kian Saunders
Alex Womersley
Harvey Bird
Austin Flaherty

Match Report
Keighley started as they meant to carry on by laying siege to the Ilkley line from the first phase of play.
Their impressive forwards, lead initially by Joseph Myers with great support from Harry Gould made great distance down the left flank and Ilkley were forced to concede a line out on their 5 yard line which Keighley were determined to take advantage of. Joss McArthur at hooker flew the ball to Myers who fed Gould who powered over for the first try inside 3 minutes.
Keighley (1) 5 – Ilkley (0) 0 – 3 minutes.
From that point on, Keighley totally dominated play and were camped inside the Ilkley half of the pitch for almost the remainder of the first half.
Despite easily winning both games at Ilkley earlier in the season, the visitors did appear to be a different proposition this time and their tenacity in defence was hugely commendable.
Ilkley brought the game to Keighley straight from the re-start but a dropped ball enabled Lennon Curr to set off on one of his jinking runs but he was forced to ground 5 yards short of the try line. From the resulting drive, Keighley pressed forward but a knock on by Gould meant that his fine effort after stealing the ball was disallowed. Ilkley lost the ball from the resulting scrum and Will Halliday was the first to capitalise, going over in the corner under a melee of players.
Keighley (2) 10 – Ilkley (0) 0 – 6 minutes.
From that point on it was one way traffic with Keighley’s forwards in dominant form. A penalty to Keighley allowed Keir Welch free reign to distribute quickly to Aaron Wilson who slipped a pass to James Field who shouldered the ball and sprinted for the line, going over in the right corner for Keighley’s 3rd
Keighley (3) 15 – Ilkley (0) 0 – 7 minutes.
Ilkley briefly threatened a fight-back but despite competing for every ball they gave away possession at the most crucial moments which Keighley were eager to capitalise on. A Keighley scrum in midfield was very quickly built upon when Welch flicked the ball to Kian Saunders but game Ilkley defence forced a dropped ball which the ever eager Welch was quick to pounce on and his jinking run led to Keighley’s 4th try in as many minutes.
Keighley (4) 20 – Ilkley (0) 0 – 8 minutes.
Time and time again, Ilkley came up against concerted Keighley resistance from the re-starts and Keighley’s power in the drive was key to their success. From another Keighley scrum the ball bobbled to Saunders who gratefully scored again.
Keighley (5) 25 – Ilkley (0) 0 – 10 minutes.
The introduction of Jack Rodborne put more pressure on Ilkley and his determined carry and repeated stealing was difficult to resist. He pressured the Ilkley defence on 10 yards and from the resulting steal he slid the ball to Alex Womersley who out-sprinted the Ilkley back line to go over in the right corner.
Keighley (6) 30 – Ilkley (0) 0 – 12 minutes.
Keighley’s policy of changing their line-up after almost every phase or try appeared to unsettle a beleaguered Ilkley but to their credit they continually tackled hard and refused to give in, occasionally making breaks along their under pressure backline but Keighley were quick to deal, in numbers with any threat.
With Curr, Welch, Wilson and Zac Scott all putting in superb tackle after tackle to supplement the ever imperious tackling of Halliday, Keighley were in no mood to give any quarter. Time after time they peppered the Ilkley back line and time after time they were repelled by sterling Ilkley defence. Slick interpassing between Rodborne, Austin Flaherty and Tom Richardson created an opening for Scott on the left flank to jink his way through the Ilkley defence to score Keighley’s 7th try of the half
Keighley (7) 35 – Ilkley (0) 0 – 16 minutes.
Straight from the re-start Keighley again piled on the pressure with Harvey Bird driving forward ably assisted by the other Keighley forwards and they made almost 20 yards before Rodborne appeared from the drive with the ball to power over in the corner.
Keighley (8) 40 – Ilkley (0) 0 – 18 minutes.
Once more Keighley turned over the ball as they dominated possession at the line-out and also were quickest to react to loose ball from the scrum, being more positive attacking Ilkley to win the ball than carrying from their own possession.
On the final play of the half the Keighley backs powered into the Ilkley defence from an Ilkley scrum and the resulting loose ball fell to Scott who gratefully accepted the chance to score his second of the game.
Keighley (9) 45 – Ilkley (0) 0 – 20 minutes.
Half Time - Keighley (9) 45 – Ilkley (0) 0
Having turned down the opportunity to stop the game at half time due to the score, Ilkley started the second half really positively and were only thwarted by last ditch Keighley defence on 2 potential break-aways.
Ilkley’s positive play seemed to unsettle Keighley for a few minutes but their confidence was restored when a quick ball from Myers let Womersley loose to score his second of the match in the Ilkley right corner.
Keighley (10) 50 – Ilkley (0) 0 – 23 minutes.
With play concentrated in the Ilkley half, Keighley’s strength began to show but their impatience led to a few unnecessary penalties and neither team were able to capitalise.
As both teams tired, more mistakes crept into the game and from another loose ball Welch was quickest to react and he crossed the line scoring his second of the game.
Keighley (11) 55 – Ilkley (0) 0 – 29 minutes.
Ilkley drove forward straight from the restart and began to pressurise the Keighley defence and their endeavour was well rewarded with a try conjured out of nothing when their scrum half seized the opportunity to slide past 3 weak Keighley tackles on the left touchline to score
Keighley (11) 55 – Ilkley (1) 5 – 33 minutes.
This spurred Ilkley on but try as they might they couldn’t break down the solid Keighley defence which needed to remain alert and aggressive to stifle out the opposition.
Final Score - Keighley (11 Tries) 55 Points – Ilkley (1 Try) 5 Points
Keighley Scorers: - Gould 1, Halliday 1, Field 1, Welch 2, Saunders 1, Womersley 2, Scott 2, Rodborne 1,
“It was good to see all players having hands on the ball and playing an active part going forwards” commented Keighley Coach Steve Welch. “I thought we re-cycled the ball pretty well again this week” he added.