London Skolars 12, Keighley Cougars 30

Keighley Cougars can relax and enjoy tomorrow afternoon’s Carnegie Challenge Cup final after keeping their hopes of finishing runners-up in the Co-operative Championship One table well and truly alive with a vital victory at a rain-swept New River Stadium tonight.

The six tries to two win avenged an 18-16 defeat at the same venue on June 12 and edges Jason Demetriou’s charges above Workington into second place on points difference.

The West Yorkshire side endured a torrid journey, being held up in North London’s notorious Friday- night traffic and not arriving until just before the scheduled kick-off time, which was consequently put back half an hour.

And although player-coach Jason Demetriou gave Keighley an early lead, two tries in four minutes midway through the first half from John Paxton and Austin Aggree put the vastly-improved Skolars, who had previously lost just one home game since mid-May, 12-4 ahead.

Cougars hit back when Demetriou put Ryan Benjafield through to score and they went in front just after the half-hour mark as Brendan Rawlins powered across the whitewash, following good work from Jamaine Wray.

Twelve minutes into the second half, winger Dave Halley and Skolars’ Olly Purslow were both sin-binned following a brawl but the extra space seemed to benefit Cougars more as they forged further ahead through tries from Gavin Duffy, on one flank, and Jake Normington, on the other.

A Danny Lawton penalty eased Cougars three scores clear before Normington’s second touchdown, five minutes from time, sealed a wet but hugely welcome win and three crucial points.

The margin of victory might have been greater had the usually reliable Lawton not been restricted to just three out of seven successful kicks by the atrocious conditions and several difficult angles.

Cougars’ fate is now largely in their own hands ahead of the final game of the scheduled season at home to fellow play-off contenders Whitehaven on Sunday, September 4.

Demetriou takes his entire squad to Wembley tomorrow to witness the Wigan v Leeds final before returning home.

Skolars: Anthony, Small, M. Thomas, Paxton, Junior, Skee, Kriovache, T. Williams, Honor, D. Williams, Bryan, Purslow, Aggrey. Replacements: Gee, Burke, Murtza, Sykes.

Cougars: Moss, Halley, Lawton, Normington, Duffy, Demetriou, Smith, Shickell, Feather, Law, Cartledge, Pursglove, Sagar. Interchange: Wray, Benjafield, Rawlins, Jones.

Attendance: 1,085