SELBY RUFC remain three points adrift of safety in Yorkshire One after a 31-15 defeat at Old Brodleians.

Having had the advantage of the slope in the first half, Selby went into the break with 10-7 lead but were then given a lesson in using the conditions by the home side who scored a further four tries.

After a couple of strong attacks and several phases of interplay between backs and forwards, Brodleians opened their account after just ten minutes with a converted try.

Brodleians were penalised for not releasing at the tackle but the ball fell off the tee just before Selby's Scott Hunt struck the ball leading to the awarding of a scrum for not playing the ball correctly.

Selby maintained the pressure and after 23 minutes Hunt converted his next chance at goal to reduce the gap to four points.

Selby forced a penalty at a scrum close to the Brodleians line after 35 minutes. With most people expecting another shot at goal, skipper Duncan Hardy's smart thinking and quickly taken tap penalty gave him the space needed to crash over to the left of the sticks. Hunt's conversion gave Selby a three point interval lead.

Any thoughts Selby had of mastering the slope and stealing a notable victory were soon dispelled.

The half was barely underway when the Brodleians' prop forward bagged himself a brace of tries. With one of the scores successfully converted, the home side found themselves with a nine point advantage just eight minutes into the second half.

Facing an uphill struggle, in both senses of the phrase, Selby made a number of changes from the bench in an effort to stem the tide.

However, Brodleians contained everything thrown at them and extended their lead after 60 minutes when another line out catch and drive saw the open side peel off to register his second try of the afternoon, giving his side the try scoring bonus point into the bargain. The conversion put the result beyond any reasonable doubt at 26-10.

Although Selby tried admirably to run their way out of defence, it was always going to be a difficult task against a fired up Brodleians defence.

The visitors did gain reward for their considerable efforts when they eventually forced their way up-field and a break through the middle by Charlie Cicero created a chance for youngster Harry Cruise to score his first try in Selby 1st XV colours.

Brodleians had the final word when their stand off drilled a kick to the Selby five metre line and showed excellent individual skills to dummy and side step his way through for the final score of the afternoon.