With the regular season nearing its conclusion, North fielded a first XV in the men’s and women’s leagues with both teams travelling to play away from home. The men made the long journey over to Huddersfield Laund Hill RUFC in a fixture that was combined to become a league and cup double header. On the following day, the ladies took to the field against local side Darlington RFC at Blackwell Meadows for their league match.
Recent weeks had seen some tough fixtures for North’s ladies as the cup run had pushed the team to their very limits against top class opposition. A local derby match was just the ticket to help get the team back into winning ways. North were quick out of the blocks and within a couple of minutes had put into practice the training ground plan, get the ball to Amy Parker in space. Parker duly obliged with her usual speed and footwork to leave her opposite defender in the dust and jogged in under the posts for the game’s first points. Centre Ellie Readman added the conversion for the extra two points.
The visitors quickly capitalised from the following restart and worked an almost identical play, getting the ball to Parker on the wing once more who had a little more to do this time but still ran around Darlington’s wide defence and dotted down for the try. The hosts had seemed stunned from the start however, a rallying speech under the posts saw Darlington enforce their will upon the game. A long series of heavy
carries by the forwards saw them eventually get the ball over the try line. A just reward for their efforts and one that put the pressure back on North.
The visitors took the restart cleanly to begin their attacking play once more. Fluidity in attack combined with hard carries and well placed kicks from Readman and debutant Sophie Bedford secured some useful field position for launching an attack. A clever read of the defence from scrum half Trinity Earnshaw enabled her to throw a dummy pass and side step her way past the defenders to score under the posts.
Readman added the extras. Barley two minutes had gone by before Earnshaw repeated the feat, proving it to be no fluke. Another try for her and, with Readman adding the conversion again, a commanding lead for North.
It was clear to all that Darlington needed to score next in order to stay in the game. Determination and ferocity in the carry saw them push North back both at set piece and open play. Patience in front of the goal line was rewarded once again with their second try and a lifeline in the match. As the first half began to close, North went in search of more points. A tiring home defence was beginning to see their penalty count increase quickly. This made light work for North of reaching the host’s five metre line. Another infringement from the home side enabled North to take a quick tap penalty and give the ball to the human battering ram that is Gina Fothergill, who made no mistake in crashing over to score the try. Readman added the conversion to end the half with North holding a 10-33 lead.

The second half began in much the same fashion as the first. A few quick phases of play showcased the handling skills of the Northallerton backs. Fly half Emma Thompson-Brooke noticed the spaces well and called for the ball to be shipped out to the wings, finding the open Parker raring to go. This time Parker’s run started in her own half but ended as it often does in the opposition try area for her hat-trick score. Darlington managed to maintain possession for a lengthy spell of play, taking the wind out of North’s sails and stemming the flow of tries. Showcasing some of their own silky handling and set play moves, Darlington moved around the pitch searching for that critical breakthrough. North managed to keep the hosts under control in spite of these efforts and, after a turnover at the breakdown, the visitors cleared the ball with a good, long kick. The lineout was proving a source of strength on this day for North and they stole the ball from the hosts to carry on the attack. A few pick and goes around the ruck brought them within inches of the try line before Kate Easton stepped up, tucked the ball under one arm and without breaking stride she forced her way over the try line to score. Readman continued her successful day with the boot by adding another conversion. Only a few minutes were left on the clock at the restart however this proved ample time for both sides to keep scoring. North shipped the ball with speed to Parker who set off in search of her fourth try. The evasive running proved too much for the tiring
defence to handle and she dived over for the try after running nearly the full length of the pitch. Readman dutifully added the conversion. It was the home side though who had the last say in the contest, rallying for one more push they forced their way up the pitch and crashed over the try line in the wider channels to finish the game.
The final score told of an exciting game with a scoreline of Darlington 15 – Northallerton 52. Player of the match was awarded to number 8 SJ Pritchard, forward of the match was given to Katie Frame whilst back of the match was handed to Emma Thompson-Brooke. Many thanks to Darlington for their hospitality and to the referee for officiating the match.

The men’s first XV took a slightly longer journey over to play Huddersfield Laund Hill in the league and cup double header. The decision taken by the Yorkshire RFU to help alleviate a crowded calendar in the next few weeks. North started brightly, carrying well and recycling the ball out of contact with speed to keep the defence on the back foot. It was the home side who scored first through, making full use of their limited possession, they moved it wide to exploit the spaces at the edge of the pitch and dived over in the corner. A second try soon followed after a kick over from a scrum in a handy position found space in behind the defence and, with a fortuitous bounce, the ball was regathered to score. The conversion was added to extend their lead.
It seemed as though the long journey had sapped some of North’s energy for running as, the home side continued to take advantage of the wider spaces, scoring another try through the use of quick hands out in the corner. It took for a series of successful scrums for North to find their feet in the game again and, with their confidence on the up they pushed hard to work an attacking platform. Several penalties given away by the hosts on their own try line meant that when flyhalf Jack Tart took a quick tap, he found Phil Swall loitering with intent on the wing. Not many men are likely to stop Swall from that range and he crashed over to score in the corner.
The middle passages of the first half seemed to pass quickly as both sides probed and tacked with confidence however, neither side could seem to find the crucial breakthrough. With only a handful of minutes until the interval left, a flurry of try scoring ensued. North notched another try courtesy of centre Ed Neville who finished off smartly following the crisp pass from fullback John Clouston. Laund Hill replied within moments, once again moving the ball out wide with speed, before repeating the feat almost straight off the restart to close out the half.

Starting the second half with a points deficit made for an uphill struggle for North, a fact made more difficult by conceding another try only a few minutes in. Familarity with a topsy turvy game is something North have mastered this season and shrugged off the scoreline to take the fight to the hosts. Strong carrying from the forwards opened up the spaces out wide for North to run into. Muscle and grit helped to finish off what had been a fine flowing passage of play but they all count the same and the forward pack drove the ball the last few inches over the line to score in the corner. There was a feel to the game of both sides goading the other to see who could score the more tries. Within a handful of minutes, Laund Hill had launched another attack from within their half that utilised some slick off loads and passing to score in the corner, nullifying North’s attempts to reduce the deficit. Laund Hill had some powerful runners in the midfield using them often and well in attack. Stout defensive work from the visitors helped to dislodge the ball in a tackle and full back Clouston kicked ahead before gathering his own nudge to score a retaliatory try. The last few minutes continued to be action packed, providing plenty of entertainment for the spectators. First Laund Hill would score a customary try out wide using their quicker wingers, before North looked to close out the match with a defiant effort scored under the posts to ease the conversion and make a final score that read Huddersfield Laund Hill 48 – Northallerton 31. A tremendous game to watch and plenty of good points to take into the last few games. Many thanks to Laund Hill for their generous hospitality, to the referee for officiating the match and to all the supporters who travelled to cheer on the team.