YORK RUFC Under-13s have won the Yorkshire RFU Cup following a 45-15 victory over Otley at West Park Leeds.

A sterling squad effort throughout the competition saw York breeze through the first five rounds - including two eight-try romps that, by the laws of the competition, meant the games had to be stopped early.

The Clifton Park youngsters saw off Bradford & Bingley (20-10), Doncaster (20-10), Sheffield Tigers (40-0), Yarnbury (40-0) and West Park Leeds (20-5) en route to the final.

Coach Greg How hailed the quarter-final win at Sheffield as the most impressive of the lot, with open play and a near-impeccable defensive performance in testing weather conditions ending the game with 15 minutes to play.

The final against Otley was all but over as a contest with just a quarter of an hour gone as York blitzed in four tries. Another solid defensive display combined with excellent width and pace from the backs kept Otley at arm's length throughout.

Louis How (14 tries) and George Burton (11) were York's top scorers in the competition, though How stressed the importance of the whole squad effort, with the 29 players on their books all pulling together to come out on top of the 37 teams entered in the competition.

He said: "To be champions of Yorkshire, one of the strongest rugby-playing counties in the UK, is an exceptional achievement.

"We've got kids from 10 different schools who all come together at training to achieve for themselves and as a group and it's impressive how they worked together to achieve what they achieved.

"It's a real demonstration of what sport is about, bringing people from different backgrounds together for a collective achievement."