QUEENSBURY A staged a brilliant comeback before falling to a heart-wrenching 24-22 defeat at Pennine League Division Three promotion rivals Woodhouse Warriors.

Bury looked to be on a hiding when the giant home pack bossed the opening quarter to put them 18-0 up but the visitors steadied the ship by tightening their defensive line, with forwards Joe Flanagan and Stephen Nagy putting in some massive hits.

They also started to play some free-flowing rugby, directed by half-backs Michael Boocock and Johnny Norman, to see them safely into the half-time break without any further mishaps.

All the hard work was rewarded on the restart when a sweeping move led to teenage wingman Nathan Daly gliding in at the corner.

The hosts replied in kind with a converted try and tensions came to the boil when the game erupted in a bout of fisticuffs.

When order was restored, Woodhouse appeared to be home and dry with only ten minutes left.

But Bury captain Luke Cheney had different ideas when he spotted a gap to reach the chalk for a six-pointer, and when they returned quickly up field from the kick-off, Boocock threaded a grubber kick through the home ranks to follow up and touch down for another converted effort.

The Warriors' confidence was clearly shaken and then stirred when centre Aaron Moore sprinted down the right wing to brush aside the full back for a cracking try in the corner but the final whistle put paid to any hopes of a famous victory as Bury’s second string agonisingly ran out of time.

Queensbury’s all-round team work was excellent but special mention must be given to the sterling contributions from Sam Cheney and the ever-improving Ben Jackson.

Victoria Rangers returned home from a 12-0 Division One defeat at West Leeds feeling mightily aggrieved.

The Vics faced a strong task in lowering the hosts' colours for the first time this term, and things were going to plan with the score all-square on the half-hour mark.

But a slip in the mud gave the Leeds side the opportunity to nip in under the sticks for the opener before Rangers responded by camping out in the home side's red zone.

They were held up over the line, and when they hoisted a bomb on the last, a blatant knock on was missed, letting West Leeds off the hook.

A hotly-disputed home try on the restart, when the Rangers players alleged the wingman stepped into touch, added to the feelings of injustice but they kept discipline and focus and were held up three times over the line in quick succession.

The stubborn defence from both sides ensured deadlock as the match ground to a halt without further troubling the scoreboard.

Victoria Rangers' second string had no trouble overcoming Kings Cross Park 52-0 on a snow-covered home pitch in Halifax.

The Division Six West table-toppers stared the procession to the whitewash when Jamie Kerr crossed for the first of his brace in the opening minute.

Phil Egan (2), Hayden Sugden (2), Matty Garbett, Ryar Khan, Joe Bell and Matty Withers joined him, allowing Sugden to add six conversions to the tally.