YORK RUFC Colts have cemented their place as one of the top young teams in the country by reaching the semi-finals of the U18 National Cup.

The Colts, last year’s beaten finalists, hammered Yorkshire rivals Sheffield 45-0 at Clifton Park to set up a last four clash with Guildford, Chinnor, or Old Albanian

With the wind at their backs, York started brightly and quickly brought their forwards into the game.

A kick into touch, close to the Sheffield line, led to a lineout. York collected the ball, set up a driving maul, and Grayson Maguire powered over to secure the first points of the game. Sam Elliot missed with the conversion in the challenging wind.

Sheffield recovered from the setback and settled down to the task. York held firm and, with some good turnovers, made their own breaks.

Both sides made handling errors as the ball moved erratically in the wind and the scrum became a key part of the game. York established a firm dominance in this area - even winning a few against the head.

In the 21st minute, with York close to the Sheffield line, Elliot sold a dummy and darted over to score near the posts. His quick conversion settled any kicking nerves and moved the score to 12-0.

Ten minutes later, York began to crank up to the pressure and Sheffield struggled to contain the driving maul.

York probed forward, drawing a penalty which was kicked to touch. From the resultant lineout, York set up the maul again and Paddy Hayes powered over the line. Elliot converted with a superb kick from the touchline to make it 19-0 at half-time.

Facing the wind in the second half, York knew that keeping Sheffield at bay would be tougher. However, York played the conditions better and always managed to escape from pressure by moving play back into Sheffield’s half.

When Sheffield collected a yellow card, York took advantage and Elliot made a great line break to secure his second try and conversion.

Another yellow for Sheffield put them under more pressure and once again the York forwards set up a maul to allow Maguire to score. Conversion missed.

With ten minutes to go, York rolled on replacements to add a new dimension to the game. Despite picking up a yellow, York managed to run in two more tries courtesy of Tom Williams, with a mazy jinking run, and Spencer Ingall following an interception and clean break. Tom Woffendin secured both conversions.