Who made all the pies?

After an early morning tour around Harrogate in an attempt to find where the U15s were playing, we followed our trusty noses back to Claro road, guided by the delicious aroma of home made pies which could only have been crafted by the skilled hand of Dave Cozens. The sight of Chris Igoe in tights could have spolied the appetite, but it was not to be and the delicious savoury pastries helped to warm the supporters on a cool and drizzly September morning in Harrogate.

The multi-talented Dave Cozens, fresh from the kitchen, took over as touch judge, jogging into position to see Harrogate kick off to Pocklington. Harrogate were fielding an under strength forwards unit, with Harry Martin on the bench, and Tom Hay and Fraser Goulding both injured.

Pock gathered safely and immediately returned the kick to Finney who took the ball well but was caught in posession and turned over. Pocklington kicked again into the Harrogate 22, finding touch well, but Harrogate dominated in the lineout to take the ball back and move it quickly to the right wing, only to be penalised at the next ruck for coming in off their feet, giving possession back to Pock. Pock moved the ball quickly to the left wing, their customary manoeuvre to put their speedy number 11 in at the corner for the first try of the match. A difficult conversion missed left the score at 0-5 after just two minutes.

Almost immediately, Harrogate responded after a deep kick off was returned from the boot of the Pock full back. James Finney working with Bruno moved the ball quickly along the back line to Ismail on the left who broke through a non-existent Pocklington line to level the scores after 4 minutes, the extras added by Finney to see Harrogate 7-5 up.

James Keane showed a safe pair of hands from the kick off and Pock were quickly penalised for going off their feet in the ruck. Finney found touch and Broadhurst took the ball from his own lineout with Dylan picking up at the back of the ruck, showing great vision to miss the incoming Ismail and pass to Toby Hall who made a fantastic break, covering 50m after puncturing the Pock defence. Desperate Pock defence pulled Toby short by just one metre. The ball found its way to Bruno, Ram Ismail and finally Harry Barnard to score on 7 minutes to bring the score up to 12-5.

The next few minutes were slowed as the ref had to constantly reset scrums due to a combination of Pock binding on the touch command and not holding the push on engage. Pocklington tried their usual move of getting the ball to their no.11 but Joe Hay and Tom Cozens closed him down very effectively. Bruno suddenly appeared with the ball in has hand and crossed the line after an individual 50m run down the wing but dropped the egg as he was tackled over the line. More delaying was to be seen now as the Pock scrum half delayed persistently on the feed at the scrum. The frustration was obviously telling on the Pock side as Tom Cozens was taken out in mid air at a lineout on the Pock 22 - a clearly dangerous move that saw the offending Pock tackler lucky to stay on the field. The resulting penalty was taken too quickly by Ellis resulting in a Bolger knock on. Pock now upped the ante with their scrum half stamping in rucks as he was clearly beginning to lose his grip on the game. A little chelping from the Pock supporters seemed to unnerve Finney as he uncharacteristically dropped a clearance kick aimed at him.

Harrogate regained possession to put pressure on the Pock line with Joe Hay pulled short in a drive for the line, with the ball to Cozens quickly returning to Hay again for a repeat drive resulting in a penalty to Harrogate for Pock holding down in the ruck. Ismail went over on 26 mins for a try from the resulting penalty, converted by Finney to bring the score to 19-5.

More good attack by Harrogate on the Pock line from Ismail, Hall and Cozens released the ball to Igoe who went in himself only to be pulled up short signalling the end of the first half.

Half Time 19-5

Pock kicked to Harrogate to start the second half with Price-Gerrard receiving well.

Pock used the slope well with a sensible kicking game but Finney at full back was equal to this. Pock also looked livelier in attack and at the breakdown and were hungrier for possession. Harry Martin held them back with text book tackles every time along with some crunching hits from Toby Hall. However, Pock were offloading in the tackle better now and with Harrogate down to 14 men with Toby Hall lying injured as play went on around him, the inevitable happened and Pock went in under the posts on 36 mins with the resulting conversion taking them to 19-12.

The Harrogate pack, already missing Tom Hay and Frazer Goulding now effectively lost James Keane who played on in spite of a neck injury. This led to uncontested scrums and took a lot of the pressure off Pock as a whole as did the loss of Toby Hall in the centre. Pock took advantage to score again down the left wing (where else?) on 38 mins 19-17.

Shortly after the restart, Harrogate were back in possession in their own 22 when Ismail burst through the startled Pock defence, to make a 75m unopposed run to score on 41 mins, Finney converting. 26-17.

The next five minutes were a scrappy affair with Pock constantly off their feet in the rucks and being penalised for it when a Pock up and under saw Harrogate lose possession on half way resulting in a converted try down the left again on 47 mins to make it 26-24.

Straight from the kick off, Bolger bundled the Pock receiver into touch. A short interchange between the sides saw the ball back out to the Pock no.11 who appeared to be taken into touch by Ismail but was then judged to have scuffed the ball back into play in what could have been deemed a knock on. Play scrappily went on on for another contentious decision when Hay took the ball carrier down just short of the line but a try was awarded on 49 mins, converted to see Pock take the lead 26-31.

Harrogate were now dominating in the lineouts and rucks, but possession was squandered elsewhere until Cozens and Hay worked well with Broadhurst to see him make a 30m burst to panic Pock. The final attack was foiled by the clock as full time saw a narrow 26-31 win for Pock.

This really was a game of two halves, with Harrogate going off the boil sufficiently in the second half to allow Pock to take the game back to them and come away with a win by the skin of their teeth. Harrogate's failure to capitalise on 90% territory and 75% possession in the first half along with a lack of urgency and injury-weakened line in the second half drew them to the narrowest of defeats.

Both sides were keen to create space on the left and both looked threatening in attack in that area. On balance, had Harrogate used more forwards phase play in a controlled manner, they would have had the edge today, particularly in the second half up the slope, but the desire to get the ball out wide was, in the end, their undoing.

Coming Up Next Week: Hells Kitchen XV as the Dave Cozens Masterclass Roadshow helps the culinarily challenged Harrogate dads to whip up a storm in the kitchen with a seminar entitled "Filo Pastry for the Beginner - an introduction". Bring your own pinny...

Statto:

2 T Pocklington (0-5)
4 T Ismail (5-5)
5 C Finney (7-5)
7 T Barnard (12-5)
26 T Ismail (17-5)
27 C Finney (19-5)
HT
36 T Pocklington (19-10)
37 C Pocklington (19-12)
38 T Pocklington (19-17)
41 T Ismail (24-17)
42 C Finney (26-17)
47 T Pocklington (26-22)
48 C Pocklington (26-24)
49 T Pocklington (26-29)
50 C Pocklington (26-31)