The Beverley Braves’ lads were really ready for a game of rugby after a lengthy lay off and this showed as from the whistle blew they flew at the opposition.
A shell shocked Isberg watched as within just two minutes the first try was scored from an all too familiar run from Dylan Clifford smashing his way over the line to stun the opposition. An excellent kick from Owen Harrison followed and the Braves were back!
As the home side kicked off a difficult ball was superbly taken by James McGahey on his knees without fault and Beverley were on the attack again. Jay Black had an excellent run and threw the dummy pass to clear a path and outwit the Hull side.
Clifford took the ball and from his own half ran without challenge to cross the line under the sticks. The away side continued to dominate; Jamie Branton took a hard tackle but still made impressive yards up the middle of the pitch.
Finally it was Isberg’s time to gain possession but they could not break free from their own half. A kick from the home side saw the ball bobble along the grass but it was cleanly taken by Tom Wood under pressure. The resulting play saw Joe Wardill run through many tackles from his own half before diving over the line to get on the score sheet.
Beverley passing went from one wing to the other and was a joy to watch involving many players and resulting in Conor Egan taking the ball well. This flowing play released Wardill and he left the opposition standing again from his own half and crossed the white wash under the posts.
A couple of minutes later Wardill broke free again and ran with speed through the Isberg players to complete his hat-trick. Not to be out done Clifford broke free from the home side’s challenges to complete his hat-trick and make the half time score 0–36.
After a half in which Beverley completely dominated the game they were caught napping as Isberg broke free and scored in the corner with an excellent run to get their first points on the board.
Despite some excellent tackling from Kurt Pelham and a solid game from Callum Officer, Isberg went through a spell where their confidence grew and they kept the Braves on their own line. Callam Bielby made an excellent tackle and the spilled ball was taken by McGahey to relieve the pressure. Harry Gray made some fantastic runs and tackles down his side of the pitch and Beverley were back in control.
A good hand-off from Beverley and fluent passing found Bielby out wide and with all his strength he put the ball down to score. Beverley Braves did not stop there though.
Wardill got the ball, again cleanly catching a high kick on his line, and he then accelerated to the other end of the pitch, cutting inside players to completely outrun them and dive under the posts for his fourth.
Beverley continued battling, Bailey Foulston was on fire in the middle of the pitch, Harvey Lazenby took some big hits and dished them out too and there was good support play from Joshua Drew, Tom Tozer and Dan Norman.
A run from McGahey saw him throw a stunning dummy to completely fool the defence and open up a path straight to the line. The converted try finished off the game at 4–52.
This was a hard and aggressive performance from Beverley of which they should be proud. Man of the Match was Joe Wardill and Top Tacklers were Jay Black and Jamie Branton.
Final Score: Hull Isberg 4 v Beverley Braves 52
