Local sporting news featuring football, rugby union, rugby league new from Beverley’s key clubs
The Blue and Golds will make the relatively short trip up to York this Saturday to face Heworth for the match at Elmpark Way.
The game, which will kick off at 2.30PM was a standout one when the fixtures were released, being the nearest thing to a derby.
Bishop Burton College is delighted to announce their hugely successful Football Academy has reached the final of the English Colleges Football Association (ECFA) Premier National Cup.
Two years after winning the ECFA Premier League, the college has reached the national cup final for the first time, firmly cementing Bishop Burton Football Academy’s place as one of the strongest college football programmes in the country.
Talented Beverley swimmer heads to the British Championships this week, 5 – 10 April, hoping for Olympic qualifying times. Kieran Grant, age 17, from Beverley Barracudas swimming club has qualified in 4 events and hopes this will open the doors to Paris, in 2024.
The Blue and Golds got their first league points of the season in a tense war of attrition at the Leisure Centre.
The home side dominated possession and territory in the second half with the visitors rarely getting out of their own half. It was a case of Dewsbury Celtic being unable to hang on to a 12-4 lead forever when having to defend so many repeat sets.
Happily, for both these sides, there is no relegation from Yorkshire One this season; otherwise, this might have been a tense relegation dogfight.
In the event it was an enjoyable and entertaining game with plenty of running rugby; carefree, almost, with nothing much at stake. Huddersfield YMCA must have one of the most pleasant playing grounds in the league and with ideal conditions and a fine sunny afternoon, there was every reason to hope for a good game.
This was another tough day at the office for the Blue and Golds, with positives again being drawn by the effort and enthusiasm that is being shown by the young squad.
It was a similar story to previous weeks, where Beverley looked to be building momentum but turned over possession at vital stages and the opposition took advantage. Sam French’s message to the players was again ”We need to play smarter”.
The visitors to Beaver park were Pontefract RUFC, flying high in the Yorkshire One table, and needing just one more victory to secure promotion their spirits were raised further upon arrival when they realised it was Ladies Day at Beverley RUFC.
There was no shortage of effort skill and energy in this Beverley performance but it is fair to say that they were out out-muscled by a bulkier pack.
The visitors were again prepared to throw the ball around but it did often result in them turning the ball over early in the tackle count. As a result, Beverley had to defend far too many sets, especially close to their own line which was energy sapping.
The local derby trip to Bridlington for the Beavers was always going to be a tough challenge. The previous week Brid came away with an away win at top of the table Old Crossleyans and look to have secured the fourth spot in the league, which is the last promotion spot.
The weather was good for an open game of rugby, and in patches, Beverley’s backs looked impressive, unfortunately, the power of the imported front row and backline of the forward pack was too much, and Bridlington was deserved winners by the end of the afternoon scoring 46 points to Beverley’s 15.
This defeat will be a ‘difficult one to swallow’ in the words of the coaching staff.
The Blue and Golds, leading 15-2 at the interval, having played some entertaining rugby in the process, shipped 4 tries in the early part of the second half to undo the good work.
The Blue and Golds will be looking to get off the mark this Saturday when Normanton Knights are the visitors to the Beverley Leisure Centre for a 2.30pm kick-off.
Their opponents from the West Riding town opened up their campaign with 22-10 victory at home to Wigan St Judes.
Frequent spells of swirling rain and a fierce wind blowing diagonally from corner to corner; it might have been expected that this would be an afternoon of uninspiring rugby for supporters and those attending the ex-players reunion.
But surprisingly both sides made light of the conditions and produced an enthralling game with plenty of running rugby and end to end action.
A youthful Beverley outfit took to the field in this encounter and came up short but must take some credit for their efforts.
A bulky more experienced Hunslet outfit clearly was on top in this opening fixture but a number of factors hampered the visitors.
The sun was out to greet the capacity entry for the first running of the East Riding Stages Rally, the first closed road rally in Yorkshire.
From the start at Bishops Burton College, it was a short drive to the opening stage at Wawne Common.
The Blue and Golds will commence their 2022 league campaign this Saturday, with a trip to South Leeds to face Hunslet Warriors kicking off at 2.30pm.
What seemed an uncertain situation just before the Christmas break, with the club seeking a new head coach, has seen the club probably enjoy one of the most positive pre-seasons in many a year.
When it comes to national hunt racing in the UK, there is no other week quite like the Cheltenham Festival. Whether it is from home, or from across the Irish Sea, the very best of the best descend on Prestbury Park to take each other on across four days, and a total of 28 races.
The 2022 Cheltenham Festival is on its way, and yet again, the very best all look set to do battle with each other. Headlining the action, we have four Championship races, the Champion Hurdle, Champion Chase, Stayers Hurdle and Gold Cup.
This was another very encouraging performance by the Blue and Golds as they signed off their pre-season preparations for 2022 with a narrow defeat.
Trevor Penrose commented; “We need not be downhearted about that one, we went toe to toe with one of the promotion favourites from division one and nearly pinched it at the death.”
The trip to Selby for the Beavers was always going to be a tough challenge, the physicality of the Selby pack and their ever-improving form in the league would always be a big test, especially for a Beverley team that has only won once this side of Christmas.
However, there was some hope as the weather relented the sun shone and the pitch was firm, although a little billowy there was a chance that Beverley’s own style of play might be allowed, and there was a sense of genuine hope that a victory might be achievable.