Wibsey 5, Old Grovians 15

This was almost the derby that never was.

The teams found out last Monday that the original referee would not be coming.

And with no further information being forthcoming, when his replacement hadn't arrived by 1.55pm on Saturday the teams realised they weren't going to be playing.

However, the cavalry came over the hill' in the shape of Maurice Parker from Fairweather Green and both sides trotted out onto the mudbath that was Northfield Road for their Yorkshire Division Five B clash.

There was standing water in a couple of places but it didn't take Wibsey long to make their mark.

They won a couple of early penalties and, after No 8 Bob Wood and prop Paul Garside had driven for the line themselves and the ball had been cleared by Grovians, neat handling created space on the right for Wibsey flanker Simon Birkbeck to cross in the fifth minute.

Wibsey were doing well in the set-pieces but with Nick Fawcette an increasing threat in the centre, Old Grovians, who had a strong contingent of Keighley and Ilkley players, worked their way upfield.

However, they couldn't find an equalising score, and it needed some good defence by the visitors to keep the score at 5-0 just before half-time.

With the wind in their favour in the second half, the odds were now very much on a Grovians victory but there was little pattern to play as both sides conceded penalties.

The most incisive running of the match came from visiting fly half Adam Weaving, and it was his break that put in left winger Dan Kondras for the try that levelled matters. Then a repeat effort between the duo put Kondras in again.

Wibsey right winger Matt Holdsworth came close to an equalising try after Grovians had spilled a speculative kick but the only other score went to Grovians' replacement left winger Richard Graves.

Grovians' Stuart Nesbitt, playing his first rugby of the season after an operation on his left ankle, said: "Maybe playing Adwick le Street in our first match wasn't such a good thing. We won 50-0 and were running in loads of tries.

"We went on to win four of our first five matches (including a 15-8 victory over Wibsey) and drew the other but since then we have found out that Yorkshire Division Five B isn't the dross that some people think it is."

Four defeats followed that and this was Old Grovians' first win since October 6. When asked where he thought Wibsey would end up, their club secretary Paul Garside paused and laughed and said: "We'll be the strongest team in Yorkshire - holding everybody else up!"

But on a more serious note, he added: "We have some good young lads waiting to come into the side but they can't play until they are 17 and can't play in the front five until they are 18.

"We didn't make take enough of our chances in the first half but I have thoroughly enjoyed both matches against Old Grovians.

"The first was like a sevens match as they threw the ball about."