THE last time York City Knights hosted one of the Kingstone Press Championship’s “top five”, they shocked erstwhile table-toppers Featherstone 24-16. The time before that, they were edged by leaders Halifax 18-14 in a game they should have won.

By half-time yesterday, however, everyone inside Huntington Stadium knew there’d be no repeat against another of the big-guns, Leigh.

The Centurions have been having money troubles recently but there was no sign of fall-out as they bagged a tenth league win, and one of their most dominant.

After shipping in 60 points against Fax and, in the Challenge Cup, Wigan, they turned things around impressively to nil top-five rivals Batley last week and they yesterday powered to a 52-4 victory against a York team who rarely looking like breaking through more authoratative defence.

It left Gary Thornton’s men, not long ago buoyed by a play-off place, down in 11th and grateful to get a fortnight’s break from league action to regroup via the Challenge Cup weekend trip to Catalans, where team bonding will be more important than the result, and the Northern Rail Cup tie against Doncaster.

The Knights were without a nap hand of key personnel in James Ford, Jack Aldous, Sam Scott and long-term crocks Matt Nicholson and Jason Golden. Losing Ed Smith in the warm-up was another blow, even if Aaron Lyons was a worthy replacement in the starting second row, as was hooker Jack Lee’s first-half exit.

They were also hampered by slack and at times bizarre officiating which missed more forward passes than it spotted and made several dubious calls, not least regarding offsides – either that or Leigh were quicker off the mark than Usain Bolt.

But, even with that aside, the Knights, for the first time this season, were out-muscled, out-thought and simply outplayed on their own turf.

Leigh boss Paul Rowley, unlike Thornton, had numbers – and good ones at that – to pick from, Martin Aspinwall their only notable injury absentee. Recent cash flow issues at the club were also brushed aside, with Leigh’s determined defence, featuring excellent line speed – which really did not need any assistance – and punishing contacts, especially impressive.

York had no answer, although Lee might claim he got the ball down over the try-line in the first half, while Jonny Presley was almost certainly obstructed when chasing a clever reverse kick from Danny Nicklas close to the sticks. Referee Peter Brooke, in fitting with an indifferent display of his own, waved home claims away.

Liam Kent went closest for York when held up over the try-line after putting his head down and having a go, but otherwise the Knights were able to make little of the field position and possession they were afforded by the Centurions’ handling, which, while being able to create nine tries, was pretty inconsistent at both ends of the pitch.

York, on the other hand, paid for many of their mistakes, both in and out of possession.

Winger Nat Browne was the first culprit, fumbling at a sixth-minute play-the-ball, with the Centurions creating an overlap by luring Browne inside, allowing Steve Maden to speed into the corner. Martin Ridyard missed this conversion but goaled all the other eight.

Matt Gardner fluffed a great chance to increase the lead moments later when launching the ball into no-man’s land with team-mates either side, but a great run in centrefield by Sam Hopkins led to a Simon Finnigan try midway through the half.

York were still in the game but when one opportunity ended in a Leigh try, as the ball went to ground and fleet-footed Ryan Brierley sped it to the other end, home hopes were ebbing away.

Tom Spencer made it 22-0 in the last minute of the first period, trotting through poor defence, and, if it wasn’t game over then, it was when Brierley got the scoreboard ticking again 53 seconds into the second half, finishing a fine move when touching down an inside kick by Greg McNally, the defence seemingly still in the changing rooms.

York finally got on the board when Simon Brown put Lyons through a surprisingly big hole, with the second-row sending Jamie Shaul sprinting home.

Shaul, in his home debut on dual-reg, by this point had been shifted from full-back to the wing, with Tom Carr – who was to be rested but was called up to the bench in the wake of Smith’s injury – reinstated at number one.

Aside from the try and a few glimpses of individuality, Shaul was not the same player that hit the headlines in his few Super League appearances for Hull. York also missed Carr’s link-up play out of the back pocket, perhaps one of the reasons several set-plays did not work and confusion rather than cohesion littered home raids.

Any hopes York had of snatching a bonus point were ended when Sean Penkywicz, on the back of two penalties, was ushered in from dummy-half, and, with the stuffing knocked out of the hosts, Brierley completed a hat-trick, set up superbly by Hopkins, Tommy Goulden crossed and the excellent Hopkins got a deserved try from a classy Penkywicz offload.


Match facts

Knights: Shaul 5, Browne 6, Latus 5, Briscoe 6, Morrison 5, Brown 6, Nicklas 6, Potter 6, Lee 6, Stenchion 5, Kent 5, Lyons 7, Pickles 5. Subs (all used): Presley 6, Sullivan 7, Carr 6, Bell 5.

Try: Shaul 58.

Leigh: McNally, Maden, Littler, Gardner, Hill, Ridyard, Brierley, Ostick, Beswick, Parker, Finnigan, Thornley, Hopkins. Subs (all used): Penkywicz, Spencer, Goulden, Duffy.

Tries: Maden 6; Finnigan 21; Brierley 34, 41, 70; Spencer 39; Penkywicz 68; Goulden 78; Hopkins 80.

Goals: Ridyard 21, 34, 39, 41, 68, 70, 78, 80.

Man of the match: Aaron Lyons – a late call-up to the starting 13 after Ed Smith’s injury in the warm-up, he ran hard in the second row.

Referee: Peter Brooke (Warrington) – so many odd calls left home fans in particular wondering if he was playing his own rules or if there was just a bad connection between his eyes and his brain.

Penalties: 8-6.

Half-time: 22-0.

Attendance: 709.

Weather: pleasant.

Moment of the match: the look of panic on commercial manager Ross Potter’s face when 12-year-old James Broady came within inches of winning the £1,000 prize in the half-time crossbar challenge.

Gaffe of the match: there were a few to choose from but ref Brooke gets it for awarding a penalty for reefing bought quite sneakily by Leigh scrum-half Ryan Brierley when he effectively handed the ball over to Jamie Shaul when wrapped up by a trio of defenders on the sixth tackle.

Gamebreaker: Leigh were never going to throw away their lead but York at least had a sniff of a bonus point before Sean Penkywicz’s 68th-minute try, on the back of two penalties, which prompted a run of four Leigh touchdowns in the last 12 minutes.

Match rating: York, normally so good at home, were poor, Leigh were very good, especially defensively, and the ref was rubbish, which made for a bad day for Knights fans.