IT is probably unwise to read too much into Saturday's result.

Workington arrived in York without nine first-teamers due to two players getting married (not to each other) and star full-back Lusi Sione's religious beliefs not allowing him to play on Saturdays.

Town will therefore be more of a threat in the play-offs should these two sides meet again, and the Knights, despite enjoying a decent win, will have to up their game to go up through the knockouts.

In their defence, York won the game early with five tries in the opening half-hour and, with runners-up spot in LHF Healthplan National League Two thus virtually assured, they perhaps were not all too geed up for the remainder of the match, allowing sloppiness to creep in.

So while Town will literally be a different side in those play-offs, the Knights too should be a different proposition even if the personnel remain the same.

Workington opened woefully so it was to their credit that, with four men who had not played for some time, three youngsters and two debutants, they made a decent fist of it in the end.

Their kick-off went out on the full, Danny Brough booted the penalty deep into their half and then strolled through some awful marking. The new Evening Press readers' Player of the Month thus began September as he finished August.

His conversion attempt, however, would have embarrassed himself and the watching Vic Yorke - the guest of honour, whose 46-year-old goals in a season record Brough had bested last week - but the little scrum-half, in the 65 minutes he played before coming off to rest a slight calf strain, went on to tally 16 points with six successful goals added to his try, so any discomfiture was brief.

It was quickly forgotten, too, as Lee Jackson went down the short side as he is often wont to do, and Craig Farrell finished brilliantly in the corner.

A Brough 40-20 then set up the field position for a penalty for reefing and the Knights were in double figures in as many minutes.

The point-a-minute continued after Brough's boot again did the damage. Town winger Thomas Armstrong made a mess of his bomb, and from the scrum, Scott Rhodes escaped a weak tackle to score.

Workington got on the scoresheet as David Pettitt did brilliantly to get the ball out for Dean Burgess to cross, but another Brough bomb caused them more mayhem and Chris Langley fed on the scraps, then a wonderful break by the sublime Rhodes gave Jim Elston a run-in.

Jonny Limmer dived over from acting-half to prove Town were still a threat, and more expertise from the visiting half-backs opened up space out wide for Matthew Johnson.

If anything, this was a reminder the Knights need to tighten up for the impending play-offs, as such sloppiness could go punished more agonisingly.

As it was, they hit back soon after half-time.

Scott Walker was deemed held up - the third 'try' the unlucky Walker has had ruled out in two games - but it wasn't long before the scoring did restart as more individual excellence by Rhodes took him cantering upfield and putting in Chris Smith.

Hard-working debutant Albert Talipeau made his mark when his chip-and-go forced a drop-out and from that the best rugby of the day involving most of the team ended with Langley getting his second.

Rhodes instigated Elston's second as he slipped through a gap and allowed his team-mate to show the defence a clean pair of heels to end the home scoring.

Great tackles by the Smiths, Chris then John, had already denied Limmer a second at the other end, and the hooker was stopped again by Farrell, but, with the Knights now in neutral, there was no halting fellow dangerman Tane Manihera as he got on the end of his own grubber, while good hands saw Town's Stephen Dawes have the last word in the corner.

Knights: C Smith 8, Walker 8, Langley 8, Spurr 7, Farrell 7, Rhodes 9, Brough 8, Wilson 8, Jackson 7, Sullivan 7, Ramsden 6, Friend 8, Cain 7. Subs (all used): Elston 8, Talipeau 7, J Smith 7, Sozi 7

Tries: Brough 2; Farrell 7; Rhodes 15; Langley 28, 58; Elston 30, 64; C Smith 46.Conversions: Brough 15, 28, 30, 46, 64. Penalties: Brough 10. Drop goals: None

Sin-binned: None

Sent off: None

Workington: Chilton, Johnson, Beaumont, Dawes, Armstrong, George, Manihera, Tuimaualuga, Limmer, Burgess, Robinson, Dean, Pettitt. Subs (all used): Bragg, Wright, Barker, Caton.

Tries: Burgess 21; Limmer 34; Johnson 37; Manihera 69; Dawes 79. Cons: Manihera 34, 69 78. Penalties and drop goals: None.

Sin-binned: None

Sent off: None

Man of the match: Scott Rhodes - scored one try, made several others and generally showed bags of confidence in taking on the line.

HT: 28-14

Referee: Julian King (St Helens). Rating: Indifferent

Penalty count: 7-7

Gamebreaker: The match was over once Knights responded to Town's first try by scoring two converted touchdowns in quick succession near the half-hour mark. There was never any doubt after that although Town did come back well.

Attendance: 1,346

Weather watch: Cloudy and humid

Match rating: It was reasonably entertaining to start with but the game got a bit patchy later on in the contest. Knights were never in danger but will have to improve for the play-offs.

Updated: 11:33 Monday, September 06, 2004