FEATHERSTONE have only been beaten seven times in three and half Kingstone Press Championship seasons, so the odds were always stacked against York City Knights defeating them twice in the same year.

It was little surprise that Rovers duly got the revenge they sought for the shock 24-16 Good Friday reverse at Huntington Stadium, yesterday’s 52-6 scoreline providing decent payback.

The floodgates never quite fully opened, with the Knights seemingly working harder than in last week’s Northern Rail Cup loss to Doncaster, but Fev’s hard, fast play was just too hard and fast for Gary Thornton’s troops to handle, reflected more so in the second half as they bagged 34 unanswered points while the heat took its toll.

The result took Rovers back to the top of the table and left York just one place above the drop zone – making next weekend’s match against Doncaster, who leapfrogged them in the ladder, even more important.

The Knights were well in the game in the opening quarter but paid the price for penalties.

Three times Rovers had easy access to York’s half and, after they forced a dropout for a second time, the defence was finally breached, Matty Dale having enough room and power to reach the line. Liam Finn booted the first of his eight conversions.

York were giving as good as they got – forcing two dropouts of their own, while Sam Scott was deemed held up over the try-line by referee Dave Merrick, cutting short players’ celebrations. But the game was ebbing away when the hosts bagged two tries in three minutes just before the half-hour mark.

Finn put up a chip kick, underneath which Will Sharp, the taller man, beat Nat Browne, the shorter man, to grab the ball and show strength to get it down.

A break out of defence following the restart then left the visitors’ rearguard stretched and Frankie Mariano scored down the right.

The last ten minutes of the half belonged to York, with Rovers unable to get out of their half.

They were getting little reward with the ball, however, until a bit of brilliance by Jonny Presley got them on the scoreboard just before the hooter.

A jink, a dart, another jink, and then a blind pass gave prop Adam Sullivan, running a support line like any good full-back, a rare try.

Debutant Dougie Flockhart converted for his first points for the first team.

Flockhart’s appearance on the wing, and a return for fit-again Sullivan, had been expected, with under-fire dual-reg full-back Jamie Shaul sent back to Hull, but there were two surprises in the Knights’ line-up.

Captain James Ford was back on the sidelines after his groin problem flared up again – something that is increasingly worrying for both player and coaching staff – and Simon Brown was omitted.

The stand-off has been off-form recently with his defensive frailties increasingly apparent, so his omission should not be too much of a shock, but it did leave Thornton’s side without their chief field kicker and with two similar half-backs in Presley and the on-loan Ben Johnston.

Nevertheless, both did well with the ball, the highlight being that try, and defensively, showcased by two excellent tackles by Johnston when Rovers seemed set for success on their left edge.

Flockhart, a former Scotland ‘A’ international in rugby union, looks like he has something to offer too. A highlight was a crunching tackle on Ian Hodson underneath a high ball, even if it was harshly ruled a foul.

The start of the second half saw York struggle to get out of their half, as Fev’s dominance up front became glaringly obvious.

Two penalties for reefing – Sam Scott and Jack Briscoe were in the tackle both times – and a forward pass from Johnston on half-way all kept the visitors stuck down the bottom end of the sloping Post Office Road pitch.

Rovers duly scored as Andy Ellis got over from dummy-half, Finn converting.

A dangerous if accidental tackle by Luke Stenchion on Jack Bussey then fired up the home ranks, and, following the penalty, Andy Kain finished well.

Dean Hadley’s restart flew straight out to maintain the pressure, as did a loose offload by Sullivan, as did a high tackle.

And, just as it looked like York were getting a foothold again, a break in centre-field was finished by Finn.

A super second try followed for Mariano and, soon enough, magic hands from Lamont Bryant led to a try for Steve Crossley.

It was all wrapped up late on by Finn’s second, another try forged by dominance in the middle.


Match facts

Featherstone: Hardman, Hodson, Mariano,Sharp, Saxton, Kain, Finn, Crossley, Kaye, James, Lockwood, Spears, Dale. Subs (all used): Ellis, Bussey, Bryant, Bostock.

Tries: Dale 14; Sharp 26; Mariano 28, 65; Ellis 48; Kain 52; Finn 63, 78; Crossley 74.

Conversions: Finn 14, 26, 28, 48, 52, 63, 74, 78.

Knights: Browne 6, Elliott 6, Lyons 5, Briscoe 7, Flockhart 6, Presley 7, Johnston 7, Potter 5, Lee 6, Aldous 5, Scott 7, Smith 6, Hadley 5. Subs (all used): Stenchion 6, Kent 5, Brining 7, Sullivan 6.

Try: Sullivan 40.

Conversion: Flockhart 40.

Man of the match: Jonny Presley – looked to unlock the door every time he got the ball but was always fighting a losing battle with his pack so often on the back foot.

Referee: Dave Merrick (Castleford) – okay, especially when he spent two minutes convincing the home crowd that a Knights tackle which forced a dropout was not high, despite their roars of disapproval.

Penalties: 7-5.

Half-time: 18-6.

Attendance: 2,208.

Weather: sunny and hot.

Moment of the match: The bit of brilliance from Jonny Presley, catching out the whole crowd, never mind the defence, with a pass out of nowhere for Adam Sullivan to score York's sole try.

Gaffe of the match: Liam Kent was made to look anything but a Super League player in the making when Matt James burst past him so easily to set up a Liam Finn try.

Gamebreaker: York might have had a chance of a bonus point had they scored first in the second half but Rovers began it well on top and Andy Ellis' try eight minutes in eked the floodgates ajar.

Match rating: Rovers were just faster, harder, and with better timing with and without the ball.