A TOP-FOUR finish is now a realistic prospect for in-form York RUFC after a stunning 34-10 victory over Bradford Salem in Yorkshire One.

Saturday’s Clifton Park win keeps York in fifth place and only one point behind next weekend’s opponents Bridlington.

York blitzed their West Yorkshire visitors with three tries in the opening 15 minutes, with Dave Routledge being followed over the whitewash by fellow backs Richard Downey and Sam Potrykus.

Salem managed to pull back to 15-10 at half-time thanks to a converted try and a penalty, but York’s superb defence prevented any further score.

Billy Cakaunitabua crossed for the first try after the break following good work from scrum-half Ben Johnson, while the prolific Alex Nixon grabbed the last two scores.

Fly-half Paul Williams converted only two of the six tries in a wayward performance with the boot and he will need to rediscover his form for some challenging fixtures in the run-in.

New signing Mike Cawthorn, the former Leeds and Wakefield centre, made an impressive debut as a second-half substitute, while Joe Maud and Nixon were the game’s two outstanding players.