London Skolars 18, Keighley Cougars 16

Jason Demetriou admits it is time to prove himself after Cougars lost their third game on the spin.

It was a similar tale to the previous defeat against Rochdale as Keighley let a lead slip late on against a much-improved Skolars outfit.

London had been blown away 66-6 at Cougars in their opening league fixture but it was a different story on their own patch, leaving Demetriou with work to do to get his side’s promotion campaign back on track.

The head coach said: “I need to earn my money now on the back of three defeats.

“I’m learning all the time but this is when you find out how good you are.”

Cougars struggled to get used to the tight pitch in the first half as the hosts led 8-0 by the interval thanks to a try from Jaroslaw Obuchowski after 20 minutes, goaled by Dylan Skee, who also added a penalty just before the break.

Keighley looked to play a narrower game in the second half and they were soon back in the match.

But it was London who registered first as Ben Bolger’s try increased the lead to 12-0.

Cougars stormed back with tries from Demetriou, Jamaine Wray – who was praised for a strong showing on his recall to the team – and Ryan Benjafield to seize the momentum.

Danny Lawton converted the latter two to leave the visitors 16-12 in front.

But Ade Adebisi touched down to level the score and Cougars hearts were broken when Skee’s penalty four minutes from time meant the spoils stayed in the capital.

“At 16-12 we should have won the game but it has been the same in the last three matches. We could have had nine more points than we have,” said Demetriou, who claimed his side’s recent inability to close out matches is a mental issue more than anything.

Skolars remain second from bottom in the table but, having only lost 14-12 at Whitehaven last week and beaten Rochdale 44-22 the week before, their recent form belies that position.

And Demetriou, though admitting he thought some of London’s tactics to slow the game down were “unsportsmanlike”, was impressed by their improvement.

He said: “Skolars’ progress has been outstanding in terms of how they have come on since our first game against them. Credit must go to their coaching staff.”

James Haythornthwaite was the only casualty for Cougars with a bang on the elbow but has plenty of time to recover as Keighley’s next match is not until a week on Sunday when they visit South Wales.

In the meantime, Demetriou may look to freshen up his squad but he remains defiant that Cougars will achieve their goal of promotion.