York entertained local friends and rivals Malton and Norton on this largely dry but overcast day. The large, vocal and good-humoured crowd were looking forward to a competitive game. York had only lost once at home and Malton only beaten twice all season, so a close fought game was expected.

Malton and Norton started with the better pace and forced York back into their own 22 for much of the opening five minutes. Some effective close-quarter drives were only kept out by staunch defence by the home side. As York settled in to the game they managed to work their way out of their half and match Malton for field position. The York scrum was operating effectively and drew a number of free kicks as Malton and Norton tried to push early to combat the York pressure.Much of the opening half was a bit of an arm wrestle with both sides failing to really launch a serious attack. The York set-piece was operating well and they managed to catch and drive Malton back over 10 meters on a number of occasions. Whilst York threatened the line, they failed to convert position and Malton were able to hold them back with relative ease. Even a mercurial, jinxing run by full-back Nixon was cut down well short of the try line.

With 30 minutes gone, the two side traded penalties, George Davis hitting the mark for York. As the half drew to a close an alleged tip tackle by York second row Dave Bates and an over-zealous retaliation by the Malton and Norton number 8 saw both of them sent to the bin. Within minutes Malton were down to 13 as their flanker was also sin-binned for another tip-tackle. The half finished 3 – 3.

Whilst it had been an engaging and close-fought first half, the crowd were hoping for a few more scores and some more clinical finishing. The second period started at a frantic pace, with both sides trying to steal the advantage. A series of penalties given away by York allowed Malton and Norton to gain the first real traction in the game but they never really looked like they were going to score. York worked hard in the close play to maintain the pressure, the number of knock-ons given were evidence of a closely fought breakdown. The defensive efforts by York was adjudged to have gone too far and they were penalised for infringing at the breakdown. From the mid-field penalty, Malton took a line-out 10m from the York whitewash and delivered a very neat training field move; The ball secured at the tail of the line was collected by forwards running on the arc from the front of the lineout and the subsequent quick ball from some effective pick and drives resulted in the first try of the game. Converted, York were now trailing by 3 points to 10.

Whilst not opening the floodgates, this first score freed both sides up to run the ball with more intent. York responded quickly with George Davis making an effective break through the midfield and releasing Nicholson outside him to score York’s first try. The conversion was missed but York were back within 2 points (York 8 – Malton and Norton 10). The ensuing passage of play reduced York to 14 men when a yellow card was turned to red as the referee unfortunately confused Marcus Britland for Dave Bates. Britland was adjudicated to have fouled an opposite man and shown a yellow card. The referee turned this to a red as he thought Britland had already received a yellow in the first half. What should have been numerical disadvantage for 10 minutes turned into a 17 minute disadvantage. It’s not clear if this was the difference between the teams but it was never the less a distraction for the York team.

Malton and Norton took advantage of their additional man and crossed the try line twice in the following 10 minutes to take the score to 8 – 24. As the game drew to a close York did their best to keep the game competitive and refused to give up. In the final significant play of the game, York picked and drove effectively with Daz Rutherford crossing. The conversion missed, the match closed at York 13 – Malton and Norton 24.

The York team and their coaches should be pleased with the way they competed against the team secure in the second place spot in the league. But what will frustrate them and the York fans, is how they were unable to turn large passages of secure possession into points. The defeat without even a losing bonus point drops York to sixth in the league. Next week away at Middlesbrough will be no let-up in the challenge that this competition delivers.