Keighley Academy 21-13 Halifax Dukes

Keighley Academy and Halifax Dukes locked horns at Rose Cottage in conditions that could only be described as "Arctic" at best !!
This was always going to reap rewards to the first team that adapted to the elements.
The first quarter of the game saw possession change hands on several occasions as cold hands and a slippy ball put paid to any consisting , free flowing rugby. After 20 minutes Keighley drew first blood when Nathan Berry rounded the posts after good back up play from several Keighley attackers. An Andrew Marklew conversion made the score 7-0.
As the half moved on the weather deteriorated and the pitch cut up making attractive rugby a non starter. On 32 minutes after a good break by Andrew Marklew , followed by a spell of Keighley pressure in the Halifax 20' Kaleb Shaw showed good footwork by stepping the the defence and crashing over at the side of the posts. Again Marklew with the extras gave the home team a confidence boosting 14-0 advantage. On the stroke of 40 minutes Halifax clawed back 3 points with a penalty after a Keighley Infringement. This made the half time score 14-3.
Halifax were first out the blocks in the second half taking advantage of a Keighley handling error in their own 20, this lead to Halifax scooting in unopposed , adding a successful conversion this pulled the Dukes right back into the game at 14-10. On 52 minutes the impressive Nathan Berry made one of his trademark breaks , momentum was carried on by Rori Cook who went close only to be denied by some desperate Halifax defence. In the next phase of play Andrew Marklew Squirmed his way through a melee of would be tacklers over the whitewash. Improving his own try with another 2 points gave Keighley breathing space again at 21-10.
More Keighley indiscipline on 57 minutes gave Halifax the opportunity to narrow the score , and a successful penalty made the score 21-13. By now the elements were creating havoc with the quality of rugby with visability decreasing by the minute , add to that the driving rain , sleet and snow and players visibly suffering. On 70 minutes the referee had no alternative but to call a halt to proceedings much to the relief of both players and spectators.
A final scoreline of 21-13 and the 3rd consecutive victory for a Keighley team who are improving by the week. Man of the match youngster Joe Emmott the pick of the bunch who is showing great maturity and never stopped running , as is Kaleb Shaw who is now starting to benefit from more quality game time . The future is certainly looking bright (unlike Saturday's weather conditions)