Fax do the double over the Raiders

Friday 23rd July 2010

Story in brief:

HALIFAX put themselves in the box seat for a second-placed finish in the Co-operative Championship with a breathless victory over the side that beat them in last autumn's Grand Final.

Matt Calland's side led 24-0 at the break and 30-6 early in the second half, but were left hanging on in the closing stages as the Raiders, inspired by loose forward Zeb Luisi, scored two tries inside the last 10 minutes to close the gap to 36-34.

In the end, a missed conversion from Barrow stand off Jamie Rooney and a late try from Halifax wingman Rob Worrincy sealed a result that could just turn out to be pivotal in the both clubs' seasons.

Fax, who showed real courage here when it was needed the most, are now five points clear of the Cumbrians, albeit having played a game more, and have lifted themselves up into second, two points clear of Leigh, ahead of this weekend's round of fixtures.

Crucially, they now know definitively that they will claim the runners up spot, and a potential one-game route to the Grand Final, if they win their remaining four league fixtures.

Fax made the perfect start, with Bob Beswick's second tackle 40/20 giving them an instant attacking platform, which ended with Luke Branighan's ambitious chip for Rob Worrincy drifting out on the full.

The hooker promptly staged a repeat performance at the end of Fax's second set, before a neat last tackle grubber kick forced a drop out.

That sailed out on the full, giving the visitors a penalty they spurned, a decision that back fired when Ben Black's flat pass was called forward.

But it was Fax who drew first blood on 13 minutes, Branighan firing the ball left and Black's cut out pass finding Jon Goddard, who stepped through the cover and out of Gary Broadbent's desperate tackle to touch down.

Lee Paterson converted for a 6-0 lead, which became 12-0 nine minutes later when a great offload from Sam Barlow put Shad Royston in the clear.

The cover converged, but Fax went right, with great hands from David Wrench and Branighan giving Dylan Nash an easy score by the corner flag.

Paterson hammered the conversion over from the sideline and was on target again just before the half hour after some vintage play from Black, the Australian showing, going and fending clear down the left set up Goddard for a second score of the night.

At 18-0, the next score looked important and it went the way of the visitors.

Goddard hared clear down the left flank, Dominic Maloney surged clear in midfield and David Wrench backed up on the right to present Paterson with the easiest of conversions to make it 24-0.

If the visitors needed any luck, and at that point it hardly looked that way, they got it on 34 minutes when Rob Worrincy spilled Jamie Rooney's spiralling bomb.

The Raiders made it over the line from the resulting possession, Paul Noone crossing from Rooney's pass, but the touchdown was ruled out for obstruction by the video referee leaving Fax sitting pretty at the break.

Calland presumably braced his side for the onslaught to come as they digested their half time oranges but that was not enough, the Raiders drawing blood within three minutes of the restart, Rooney scoring after Broadbent had slipped the shackles of a hitherto iron-clad defence.

The stand off converted for 24-6, but the visitors' riposte was immediate: scintillating attack down the right paving the way for Black and Branighan to prise open a gap for Barlow to charge into and score.

Paterson converted for 30-6, but that scoreline was on the board for a matter of seconds, Barrow substitute Jamie Butler charging clear and hooker Keal Carlile scampering away to score, Rooney making it 30-12 with the conversion.

Referee Ronnie Laughton then made a crucial call, pulling Fax up for offside rather than awarding the scrum after Barrow had spilled the ball 30 metres from their own line.

The Raiders charged upfield and Michael Knowles, their replacement back rower, twisted over next to the posts.
Rooney's kick made it 30-18 and from being game over it was very much game on.

Laughton continued to do his bit, blowing himself hoarse to the tune of 6-0 as the visitors found themselves on the back foot for the first time in the game.

Fax hadn't even touched the ball again when Martin Ostler twisted over on the right, Rooney closing the gap to 30-24 with the kick.

And the visitors would have been behind on 61 minutes if Black had not pulled off a try saving tackle on flying winger Andy Ballard.

Branighan then set Nash free down the flank but the centre was pulled back for a forward pass, while at the other end Rooney forced another drop out with a chip kick to the corner.

Fax held on desperately and then delivered the counter-punch they had been looking for since Barlow's try, Royston scoring after some slick work from Black and Beswick.

Paterson's kick set up a 12-point lead with just over 10 minutes remaining, an advantage that looked marginal at that stage and even more so when Zeb Luisi's grubber kick set up Andreas Bauer to score in the corner.

Crucially, Rooney missed the conversion, leaving Fax leading 36-28.

Luisi then teed up Liam Harrison in virtually the same spot, with Rooney predictably cutting the gap to a mere two points with just minutes remaining.

Fax toughed it out though, constructing a perfect set of six: strong, straight running, capped by an intelligent kick from Sean Penkywicz that bounced awkwardly in front of Bauer, forcing an error from the New Zealander that gave Nash the easiest of tasks to set up Worrincy for the winner

Match facts
Barrow: Gary Broadbent; Andrew Ballard, Anthony Blackwood, Liam Harrison, Andreas Bauer; Jamie Rooney, James Coyle; Brett McDermott, Nathan Mossop, Andy Bracek, Ned Catic, Paul Noone, Zeb Luisi. Subs: Michael Knowles, Keal Carlile, Martin Ostler, Jamie Butler

Tries: Rooney, Carlile, Knowles, Ostler, Bauer, Harrison,

Halifax: Shad Royston; Rob Worrincy, Dylan Nash, Jon Goddard, Lee Paterson; Luke Branighan, Ben Black; Neil Cherryholme, Bob Beswick, Michael Ostick, Dave Larder, Dave Wrench, Sam Barlow. Subs: Sean Penkywicz, Anthony Bowman, Dominic Maloney, Frank Watene

Tries: Goddard 2, Nash, Wrench, Barlow, Royston, Worrincy

Goals: Paterson 7

Referee: Ronnie Laughton (Barnsley)