Otley A vs Harrogate A

This was Harrogate's first strong opposition of the season. Otley are a strong competitive team, and Harrogate really didn't rise to the challenge. Harrogate lost their scrum-half/captain just before kick off, and their good fortune didn't improve beyond this. Otley were surprisingly slow off the mark in the first half, and Harrogate held on most of this half, with Otley just about scoring a simple try towards the end. The second half Otley started to dominate, and ran in a second try at the close, 10-0 final score. Harrogate forwards struggled to control loose play at all, and the backs made some simple errors when opportunities arose. Against good teams you may only get one or two opportunities a game so finishing off is everything. On the plus though, tackling was very good throughout, so even against the very best Harrogate will always be within a shout if they can get some tries. A high level tournament next week at Macclesfield, so hopefully a relaxing half-term will provide some time for thought, and a fresh start next time.

Report by Tim McClune.