North One East: Bradford & Bingley 20 Pocklington 15

FOR the second week in a row, Bradford & Bingley fly half Gerhard Nortier failed a late fitness test on his troublesome foot, forcing Martin Wycombe to again shuffle his backline at the last moment.

With Dom Copsey shuffling across to fly half, Whitcombe brought in veteran centre Richard Tafa and also gave a debut to wingman Ryan Wilson.

While Tafa was his usual abrasive self in the centre and bumped and barged up the middle of the field, the ball rarely made it to the wing as the home side seemed to limit their ambition and played a tighter game than might have been expected.

In Nortier's absence, kicking duties were passed to Schalk Oosthuizen, and the pink-booted centre boomed several ambitious shots at goal wide of the uprights late on in the game as the Bees sought to put the game to bed, having had limited success in breaking down the Pocklington defence from open play.

The visitors had the better of the first half and will consider themselves unfortunate not to have turned round further in front as all they had to show for their endeavours was a 29th-minute try from David Birch, converted by Matt Procter, and a penalty from the boot of Procter for a 10-3 lead.

The Bees pack were led by a fine effort in the tight exchanges from Brett Mitchell, but it was his second-row partner Harry Jeffrey who crossed the whitewash in the 45th minute to put the home side 13-10 in front, Oosthuizen adding the conversion to an earlier penalty.

As the game reached the midpoint of the second half, it was Oosthuizen who claimed his fourth try in as many games to put the Bees 20-10 ahead.

The ten-point differential was shortlived as Pocklington pulled within five points with a score in the 64th minute.

The Bees were awarded a number of penalties and, rather than kick to the corner and try a catch and drive for the line, Oosthuizen had no hesitation in signalling for the kicking tee to try and pull the Bees eight points clear.

Although all of his pots at goal were unsuccessful, the Bees kept their visitors largely hemmed in their half for the final 15 minutes and the four league points were duly claimed.