Keighley U10s 5 North Ribblesdale U11s 5

The visitors could only manage to field 3 under ten players in their team whilst the Keighley squad totalled fifteen.
If the visitors thought it was going to be easy, however, they were soon in for a shock. Their cocky attitude and forward running was rebuffed time and time again by the committed Keighley youngsters. As the first half drew on the home side grew stronger still, the scrum of Harvey Kemp, Samuel Grant and Liam Brookes winning more and more against the head. The half back pairing of Matthew Paul and Tom Wilson were able to move the ball along the back line, creating running opportunities for Ryan Gibson and Robert Paul which they exploited well. The Keighley team tackled ferociously, rucked the ball cleanly on the floor and mauled away possession when they could. Their only failing was their inability to present the ball to their own team when in contact, giving North Ribblesdale the opportunity to steal possession and turnover play.
The wings of Ellie Kildunne and Harry Gallagher were solid in defence and direct in their runs whilst also finding chances to interlink in midfield.
At half time the turn around score of 0-0 was a reflection of the punishing 15 minutes that had been put in.
As the second half began it was a case of more of the same. Keighley rotated their players with Reece Butler, Josh Wisaur, Josh Addy, Wiliam Hancock, Kieran O’Driscoll and Archie Mowle all giving great accounts of themselves in all dimensions of play.
The deadlock was broken with 5 minutes left on the clock when a lapse in concentration saw the visitors run in at the corner. Keighley didn’t let their heads go down, however and with the penultimate play of the game Ellie Kildunne raced the length of the pitch to level the scores.
This was a great performance and a great result from the Keighley team who showed their cohesion and skills to an appreciative crowd.