North One East: West Leeds 43 Cleckheaton 17

CLECKHEATON played West Leeds in a league match for the first time in a generation as the Wortley-based team have gained two promotions in two seasons via a set of very good colts becoming equally adept in the open-age environment.

The visitors welcomed back Joey Carley to the fold after he has spent the first half of the season at Huddersfield, and the back rower-hooker had several enterprising jaunts during the 80 minutes.

However, the game, which pundits expected to be close before kick-off, was effectively over in the first 20 minutes.

It had barely got underway when Cleckheaton’s Lee Queeley was sin-binned for a tackle across the chest which ended up around the neck, and the centre was sent to the bin under the new high-tackle rules.

West Leeds took the three points on offer via the boot of Dale Breakwell, and over the next ten or 12 minutes ran in another three tries through George Carpenter, Danny Booth and Duane Smith, two of which were converted.

Cleckheaton were restored to a full complement but were looking at a deficit of 22-0 from which they were never able to recover.

The remainder of the game saw each side score three tries apiece, with West Leeds going in for another two tries, giving them a mountainous 36-0 lead, before Cleckheaton got on the board.

Steve Anderson and former Leeds Rhinos player Mark Calderwood did the honours for Wests, with Breakwell adding both conversions.

A penalty five minutes from the end of the first half and a well-executed line-out drill gave Cleckheaton their first moments of pressure during the entire game and, after several charges forward, Ryan Piercy muscled his way over for the visitors, with Bailey Smith adding the extras, and at the break Cleckheaton trailed 36-7.

Cleckheaton were facing a huge defeat and needed to dig deep to ensure that West Leeds could be better contained in the second period.

The Spen Valley men did put in a much improved second 40 minutes and scored two tries to one but it was Wests that scored first when a cross-field kick from Breakwell went over the head of Cleck’s defence, took a bizarre bounce and landed perfectly in the bread basket of Booth, who went in for his second and West Leeds’ sixth try.

Cleckheaton’s forwards upped their game and drove over the hosts' line, with Brad Marsden getting the ball down and Ronan Evans converting.

For the last ten minutes, the possession and territory were all Cleckheaton’s and there was faint hope of a try-scoring bonus point, which inspired the Cleck supporters to continue to shout vigorously for their team, even though the result was never in question.

The visitors went close a couple of times before Queeley eventually went in for their third try.

The referee signalled that the restart was effectively the last play but to sum up Cleck’s afternoon in a couple of seconds, the ball was then speculatively kicked upfield as the thought of the inch by inch progress through raw hard work, became too much.

West Leeds turned over possession and the game ended with them taking the spoils.