Otley 32 Stourbridge 8

OTLEY began the post-Mark Luffman era with a much-needed National League Two North victory.

Five successive defeats had been the precursor to them dispensing with their head coach the previous weekend.

Getting a win was a big priority for the Cross Greeners to keep the relegation zone at arm's length and they comfortably achieved it.

Scunthorpe, who showed a liking for the lateral pass and the kick downfield, put in some good early hits and held Otley at 3-3 for half an hour but then found their right-flank defence exposed.

Otley scored three tries in seven minutes leading up to half-time and removed any doubts, as well as gaining a four-try bonus point, with two more scores in the opening 13 minutes of the second half.

The only significant pressure that fourth-bottom Scunthorpe applied was when Otley had two players in the sin-bin (Paul Petchey and Michael Coady) for technical offences in the final 15 minutes – and by then Otley were home and hosed.

Otley director of rugby Peter Clegg said: "It has been a difficult week but we have had a really good week's training and we badly needed that win.

"We gave a decent performance, the defence was exceptional and I was delighted with the execution of the tries."

Although Scunthorpe were strong in defence initially, the hosts also created some chinks in their armour, with fly half James White putting Coady through a gap, an attack that ended with Otley gaining a five-metre scrum, and lock Jon Stannard – who was making his first start of the season – driving through a hole in midfield.

Full back Tom Hodson, Otley's most potent attacking force, came close to gathering his own chip ahead before referee Michael Harris did Adam Middleton no favours by calling him back for a high tackle by White when the Scunthorpe full back was clean through.

A minute later, Middleton gave the Lincolnshire visitors the lead – but it only lasted two minutes as Hodson levelled in kind after a high tackle on hooker Ben Steele.

Otley were stringing together some phases by now and found joy down their left in the 33rd minute, Hodson dummying outside him before going over for the first try.

The same player broke again two minutes later, putting White in with an inside pass, and in the 39th minute the home side found more space on their left, a long pass creating the opportunity for the dangerous Hodson to put winger Alexander Beaumont over.

Hodson converted White's try for a 20-3 half-time advantage but Beaumont was injured in the act of scoring his try and was replaced at the start of the second half by Petchey.

By that time, Scunthorpe had already lost flankers James Dyson (knee ligaments) and Edward Newsum (shoulder) injured and three team-mates came off injured in the second half – prop Oliver Cole in the 42nd minute (elbow) plus lock David Garbutt and replacement Grant Elliott in the 70th.

Petchey was soon in the action, scoring in the 45th minute in the left corner after the home side had been awarded a free play by the referee.

He was followed over the whitewash by Max Johnson eight minutes later after White dummied to pass inside and exploited the gap to put the busy scrum half over.

Hodson converted the latter try but the game then became something of a stalemate on a cold afternoon, until Petchey (tackling a man off the ball) and Coady (dissent) received yellow cards within four minutes of each other.

This put a bit of a spring in Scunthorpe's step but it still needed the intervention of assistant referee Don Helme to award Gareth Mist a try in the 72nd minute after it seemed that flanker Tom O'Donnell had tackled the Scunthorpe hooker into touch.