Keighley 39

Selby 17

THIS was a well-deserved Yorkshire Division One victory for a rampant Keighley.

Early pressure kept Selby pinned in their half, then some slick hands and a final pass from Lucas Uren gave winger Chris Stead the chance to step inside to score.

Selby, sitting fourth in the league, gained some good possession from their strong forwards. Trying too hard, they forced a pass that was intercepted by centre Sean Kelly, who raced 50 yards to score under the posts, converted by Jack Atkinson, who later added a penalty.

Keighley, with the cushion of a good lead gave outside half Grayson Tihema the chance to speculate, breaking out in his own half he proceeded to dazzle numerous defenders to score wide out.

Selby facing certain defeat upped their game with number eight Scott Birch making the hard yards they forced their way deep into opposition territory.

A driven line out on the five metre line gave prop Adam Leetham the chance to break down the blind side to score.

Keighley responded and once again gained territory, a driven line out and some forceful play from full-back Matty Langstaff put the Selby defence on the back foot, quick ball to Tihema gave him the time to give an inch perfect pass to centre Kelly on the crash and his second try.

Though Selby rallied and came close to scoring they could not break through a packed Keighley defence, well-organised by centres Kelly and Tillotson.

To finish the half, Tihema chipped over a rushed defence to gather and score, converted by Atkinson.

In the second half Selby were gifted easy possession from loose kicks. Their pack, now intent on making more of an impression, forced a lineout.

Hard driving play saw them grab a well-deserved try for the forwards. Keighley, unable to gain any meaningful possession, were forced to defend for long periods. The constant pressure told and a yellow card was awarded for collapsing a maul.

Forcing the issue, Selby, with an extra forward, chose to scrummage, the retreating Keighley pack wheeled which led to yet another yellow card.

The two-man advantage soon told and a well-taken try under the posts for big centre Bob Robinson, converted by outside-half Josh Cruise.

Keighley eventually gained decent possession and were sensible enough to keep things tight, using second row James Fox and the back row to drive the ball up with close support.

Eventually both carded players returned and the final push ensued.

A lineout deep in Selby territory was driven over the line by the whole Keighley pack, wing forward Lucas Uren claiming the touchdown. Atkinson added the difficult conversion.

Given the last two performances, it was hard to believe this was the same Keighley. Fundamentally an excellent Keighley team performance, both forwards and backs on top of their game.