Try to figure way to combat Knights' threat

Here's a clue - his name is Dent.

The answer is perhaps not the one expected: it's youngster Adam Dent, whose tries against London Skolars and Hemel Stags back in May gave him a ratio of one per appearance.

It's big brother Ben, of course, who has been hitting the try-scoring headlines for Gary Thornton's men this year with 19 in 21 appearances, but he actually only comes third in the ratio stakes, behind Adam and the leader on the list, the dual-registered Castleford youngster Brad Day.

So what, you might say?

Well, with the regular season now over, we thought it time to have a look at where the Knights' tries have come from this year - a possible pointer to who the team will turn to for points in the all-important play-offs to come.

In addition to tallies, we've also factored in tries per match ratios to check on who is the most prolific.

Winger Ben Dent's return, whichever way you look at it, is a terrific one, especially for someone in their first full season as a bona fide first-teamer.

Next up in the try charts - and still a contender to end the season on top - is hooker Jack Lee, the only ever-present in the team this year, who has 18 in 22 games.

Perhaps worryingly, though, Lee, after setting a York RL record of scoring in ten consecutive matches, hasn't crossed the whitewash in any of the last three games, ever since it was announced he would be joining arch-rivals and promotion rivals Hunslet Hawks next year.

Dent hasn't scored in the last two games, either, so does that mean the well is running dry for the top two? One would hope not.

In better news, the other winger, James Saltonstall has by contrast recently found his scoring boots, notching six tries in the last six games to take his tally to eight in 16 since arriving on loan from Warrington.

York have been reasonably prolific in recent years from hooker with Lee's tries being supplemented by those of youngster Kriss Brining, but the latter's ratio has dropped off this year, with his try last week against the Skolars being only his second all term, in 11 appearances.

Next in the charts after Lee come two half-backs - Pat Smith and Jonny Presley, both with nine.

Presley might have found himself on the fringes in the second half of the season but what cannot be overlooked is his ability to support breaks and find the whitewash at this level, having bagged his nine in only 11 appearances.

He has by far the best ratio of all York's half-backs of 0.82 tries per game, alongside Lee in the upper echelons of the ratio table. But is that going to play a part in the play-offs? He does currently appear to be down the pecking order.

Smith, by contrast, has sat out only one match this season giving him a ratio of 0.43 tries per game, while Benn Hardcastle has a similar ratio in his ten appearances and Ben Reynolds has a ratio of 0.50 in his 14, though some of those have come from full-back. A ratio of 0.5 equals exactly one try every two games.

Joining Saltonstall on eight tries is Ed Smith, who heads the scoring charts for the forwards aside from Lee.

Ryan Mallinder, likewise a regular this term, has seven, suggesting the back-rowers provide a decent threat to opposition try-lines.

There have been 18 tries in total from second-row, which doesn't compare badly with 23 from centre. In fact, is the return from the centre berths a little disappointing by comparison, seven fewer than the number from the wings, and two fewer than the half-back total?

James Ford has the most from that position, with 6 in 13 appearances, which isn't a bad ratio, but Day showed in his short time at the club how many could potentially be scored on the edges, with five in his first two appearances, albeit no more from his next two starts.

The tables below show the try-scoring charts in two ways. The first has the top-scorers at the top, the second has the players with the best ratios at the top.

We've also compiled a table of tries per position. These show that the wings are the most prolific areas, with half-back showing up well, too. Lee's haul has lifted hookers right up there too - being the most prolific position on the pitch for York when considering there is only one hooker on the pitch at any one time, compared to two for wing, centre, half-back, prop and second-row.

Of course, these stats do not take into account the amount of minutes spent on the pitch, so the ratios for the pack men would be increased if tries per minute were calculated - meaning Lee would be way out on his own at the top of the list and prop Colton Roche, for example, would climb the charts a fair way too, given he has four from only 11 appearances, some of which time is spent recuperating on the sidelines.

Possibly even more importantly, these figures also don't take into consideration the opposition when the tries were scored, or the actual value of each try - in other words who comes up with the touchdowns when it really matters.

Similarly it doesn't take into account other big plays or key moments in games, nor does it value the amount of dirty work, unseen work, that some players get through without due individual reward on the scoreboard.

However, would try-scoring charts and ratios come into play if you were picking the team for next week's semi-final?

CONGRATULATIONS to assistant-boss Mick Ramsden, who has recently got his Level 3 coaching badge in rugby league - the second-most badge available in the game.

The course, available only to coaches who work in a "performance environment" with at least two years' experience and a Level 2 badge, took club stalwart Ramsden over a year to complete. Generally only coaches at professional clubs get Level 3 - head coach Gary Thornton already has his badge - and only a few, generally in Super League, have Level 4.

Such a qualification opens doors for Ramsden himself in the coaching world but for now is of benefit mainly to the Knights, especially with the man himself stressing he wants to go nowhere.

"I love it at the Knights," said the 42-year-old, who is York through and through. "I'm ambitious for the future - but I'm ambitious for the Knights.

"I'm still developing and learning and I want to keep doing that here. With everything else I've got going on, I'm not looking at anything else.

"To have Level 3 will be good for the Knights, too, as I put what I've learned into practice."

Summing up the course, he said: "There are 12 tasks to complete. There are two practical assessments and ten tasks which cover a whole load of different areas, such as benchmarking of players, working out player development programmes, video analysis, putting together training plans, physiology, nutrition, coaching philosophy, understanding how professional clubs operate, etc.

"It was a lot of work, especially on top of working full-time, coaching at the Knights and family life. It took up most of what spare time I've got - but it's definitely worth having.

"Super League coaches have Level 3, so it's great to be qualified at that level, and some, like Richard Agar (former Knights boss now in charge at Wakefield) have Level 4, which is more like a degree level."