Sheffield Tigers 10 Titans 40

Rotherham Titans put in an outstanding performance as they beat local rivals Sheffield Tigers 40-10 on a wet afternoon at Dore Moor.

Titans outscored their near-neighbours by 5 tries to 1 with scores coming via a brace from Danny Rylance and one each for Sam Veall, Theo Nwosu-Hope and Matt Challinor, with Lloyd Hayes adding 15 points from the tea.

Hayes’s tally from the game ensured he ended the season with the accolade of being the leading point’s scorer in the division.

With Titans having lost the reverse fixture at Clifton Lane earlier in the season, there was a sense of wanting to even the score going into this one and Rotherham certainly put in a motivated and powerful performance to finish their campaign in some style.

The game started as expected with both sides showing plenty of enthusiasm for the task ahead, but it was Roth who nosed ahead on 7 minutes when Lloyd Hayes knocked over a penalty.

Roth soon stamped their authority on the match though, with their pack in particular showing good dominance both at the set piece and in the loose.

However, when Roth’s first try came it was from scrum half Sam Veal. The acting half back showed great awareness and guile to snipe over from the base of a ruck. Hayes’ successful conversion secured him as the division’s leading point’s scorer for the season.

Ten minutes later and Roth increased their lead when tight head prop Danny Rylance dotted down from a catch and drive close to the line.

Just before the break Tigers did get on the board when fly half Mark Ireland knocked over a penalty.

Following the half time oranges Rotherham started the second period just as strong as the first and inside two minutes had their third try when second rower Theo Nwosu-Hope showed great determination to power his way over.

Hayes converted and followed up with two further penalties to stretch his side’s lead to 28-3.

However, no game between these two teams would be the same without a try from former Titan and Tigers centre Jamie Broadley and just before the hour mark Jamie raced through for his usual dot down under the posts.

Unfortunately for the home side this success was not a catalyst for a comeback as seven minutes later Danny Rylance collected the ball from the tail of a line-out before racing through to score.

The final try of the game came shortly after when Roth’s Matt Challinor collected the ball five metres out before bulldozing his way over with Tigers defenders hanging from him.

The result ensured Rotherham finished the season with six straight wins and following Otley confirming their last game of the season Vs Blaydon wouldn’t take place, Roth secured a fourth place finish in the table.

Speaking after the game Titans Gary Pearce said:

“We knew this was going to be a special game because it’s a local derby and when you get beat in the first one it should motivate you to do better in the next one and all credit to the lads for turning it around today.

“The scoreboard didn’t flatter us at all and the margin of victory should have been much wider; I knew in our warm-up the lads really wanted it and they played ridiculously well and fully deserved the win.

“We weren’t as clinical as we could have been at times, we got a bit excited at overplaying, but it’s the end of the season and you can’t stop them trying to play a bit of rugby. You want them to play, but to also respect the ball.

“In the second half we came out and just blew them away in the first 20 minutes with our power and overall we are really pleased with how the game went.

“I have to give a mention to Lloyd Hayes on his achievement of topping the scoring charts in the division. He’s incredibly accurate off the tee and he doesn’t miss many and all credit to him for what he’s done this year; we are very proud of him.”

Referee: Gavin Jones

Attendance: 365

Yellow Card: Rylance (Titans)

Titans: Rylance (2T), Veall (T), Nwosu-Hope (T), Challinor (T), Hayes (3C, 3P)

Sheffield Tigers: Broadley (T), Ireland (1C, 1P)

Titans: 15 Tomasi Tanumi, 14 Jack Hedley, 13 Harry Dunne, 18 Callum Bustin, 11 Luckas Sableman-Blue (Denman 54) (Sableman-Blue 64) (Taylor 69), 10 Lloyd Hayes, 9 Sam Veall, 1 Charlie Capps (Donkor 57), 2 Jack Bergmanas (Capps 68), 3 Gareth Denman (Rylance 30), 4 Matt Challinor, 5 Theo Nwosu-Hope, 6 Lewis Allan (Tucker 76), 7 Marcus Payne (Godden 68), 8 Zak Poole (Capt.).

Replacements: 12 Aydan Godden, 17 Alastair Donkor, 27 Danny Rylance, 19 Jack Taylor, 21 George Tucker.    

Sheffield Tigers: 15 Will Baker, 14 Michael Graham (Miller-Pickering 71), 13 Jamie Broadley, 12 Sam Wager, 11 Curtis Wilson (Chapman 18), 10 Mark Ireland, 9 Ryan Holmes (Capt,), 1 Sim Meek, 17 Will Archer (Townsend 41), 3 Nick Bingham (Cone 78), 4 Joe Fitzsimons, 5 Dan Hawksworth (Cartwright 48), 6 Connor Scott, 7 Angus Hughes, 8 Josh Redfern.  

Replacements: 16 Charlie Cone, 2 Louis Townsend, 18 Harry Cartwright, 19 Harry Chapman, 20 Tyler Miller-Pickering.

Harrogate 17 Titans 45

Rotherham Titans made it five successive league wins with a dominant 45-17 win over Harrogate on a bright afternoon at Rudding Lane.

Rotherham outscored their hosts by seven tries to three with score’s coming via a hat trick for skipper Zak Poole and one each for Gareth Denman, Luckas Sableman-Blue, Matt Challinor and Harry Dunne, with Sam Veall adding 10 points from the tee.

The victory guarantees Rotherham at least fifth place in the league, which following their mid-season slump can be seen as a positive to take into next season.

The game itself was largely dominated by the South Yorkshire side, but it wasn’t until the 15th minute that they got the scoreboard ticking when skipper Zak Poole dotted down from a catch and drive close to the line.

Poole added a second shortly after, when following a number of phases inside the host’s 22, he showed great strength and determination to crash over next to the sticks. Sam Veall added the extras.

A now rampant Rotherham added to their tally just before the half hour mark when prop forward Gareth Denman dotted down in the corner from a driving maul.

Before half time the bonus point was secured in scintillating style when winger Luckas Sableman-Blue collected the ball on halfway from Callum Bustin; he then proceeded to show great footwork as he raced past three defenders to score a lovely try. Veall knocked over the extras.

The second half was a more even affair, although Titans wasted little time in adding to their score when lock forward Matt Challinor dotted down from a maul after just 4 minutes. Veall converted.

Three minutes later and after good carries from Alastair Donkor and Marcus Payne in the build-up, Sam Veall popped a nice pass to Zak Poole on the edge of the 22 for him to gallop home to score under the posts. Veall’s conversion made it 38-0.

To be fair to Harrogate they never stopped trying and their efforts gained some reward on 54 and 66 minutes respectively when winger Will Yates and replacement centre Harrison Walker both crossed the whitewash. Fly half Tom Steene successfully converted the first.

Two minutes from the end of normal time Harry Dunne, who had a good game playing out of position in the fly half shirt, scored Titans seventh try of the match when he received a pass from Sam Veall to dive over in the corner. Veall impressed with his conversion from out wide.

The last word however came for the hosts when skipper Sam Brady picked up from the base and dived over in the final play of the game.

Nevertheless Rotherham can be pleased with their efforts on the day and can take confidence from the fine form they are currently enjoying. They will now prepare diligently for the final game of the season away to local rivals Sheffield Tigers on Saturday.

Speaking after the game Rotherham head coach, Gary Pearce said:

“We had some late changes in key positions, with Sam at nine and Harry at ten and they both did really well. We scored seven tries and probably left another four out there, but I have to give Harrogate a lot of credit as they stuck in there throughout the game.

“We are always pleased to get a win away from home; we picked up the bonus point and we made it five wins on the trot which always helps in terms of confidence. Our defence was good, but we were a little disappointed to concede the try at the end, when we probably should have scored at the other end moments earlier.

“However, overall it was very positive, the lads are really putting in the effort and with us being down to the bare bones; there’s a few of them playing out of position, but they’re still putting in good performances.

“As a group we have got stronger, of course winning always helps as that gives you more confidence. We have put a lot of emphasis on our structure defensively with Clive (Griffiths) and that has helps us along too.”

Referee: Dan Woods

Attendance: 275

Yellow Card: None

Titans: Poole (3T), Denman (T), Sableman-Blue (T), Challinor (T), Dunne (T), Veall (5C)

Harrogate: H Yates (T), Walker (T), Brady (T), Steene (1C)

Titans: 15 Jack Taylor, 14 Jack Hedley, 13 Tomasi Tanumi, 18 Callum Bustin, 11 Luckas Sableman-Blue (Tucker 69), 10 Harry Dunne, 9 Sam Veall, 1 Charlie Capps (Donkor 27) (Rylance 69), 2 Jack Bergmanas (Capps 51), 3 Danny Rylance (Denman 27), 4 Matt Challinor, 5 Theo Nwosu-Hope, 6 Marcus Payne (Cambier 51), 12 Aydan Godden, 8 Zak Poole (Capt.).

Replacements: 16 Rupert Kay, 17 Alastair Donkor, 30 Gareth Denman, 27 Cade Cambier, 21 George Tucker.   

Harrogate: 15 Charles Buckley, 14 Rupert Scrase, 13 Will Rawlinson (Walker 48), 12 Harry Yates, 11 Will Yates, 10 Tom Steene (Rawlinson 55), 9 Ben Raubitschek (Fox 73), 1 Jacob Percival (Baxter 65), 2 Steven Maycock, 3 Tom Baxter (Elsayed 41), 4 Sam Fenn (Jones 41), 5 Sam Brady (Capt.), 6 Martin Dodds, 7 Will Hill (Jackson 53) (Fenn 70), 8 Thomas Spencer-Jones.  

Replacements: 17 Seifeldin Elsayed, 18 Chris Jackson, 16 Greg Jones, 19 Harrison Walker, 21 Sam Fox.

Titans 38 Preston Grasshoppers 7

Rotherham Titans put in an impressive performance as they ran out convincing 38-7 winners over Preston Grasshoppers on a mild afternoon at Clifton Lane.

Titans outscored their North West opponents by 6 tries to 1 with their tries coming via a brace from Jack Hedley, a penalty try and one each for Lewis Allan, Jack Bergmanas and Zak Poole, with Lloyd Hayes adding 6 points from the tea.

The victory was the first time Rotherham had put 4 successive wins together all season and adds to their strong finish to the season. They will now aim to make it five on the spin in their next outing away to Harrogate.

This game was expected to be a much tighter affair as Grasshoppers came to Clifton Lane in good form and having beaten the Titans at their place earlier in the season and whilst the visitors did put in a valiant shift, Rotherham never looked like relinquishing control at any stage of the match.

Indeed Roth took the initiative and the lead as early as the 2nd minute when winger Jack Hedley broke down the right hand side; he then exchanged passes with Zak Poole before diving over for a nice score. Lloyd Hayes’s conversion unfortunately hit the left upright.

Despite dominating the opening exchanges of a scrappy affair, it wasn’t until after the half hour mark that Roth added to their tally, when a powerful scrum close to the line was illegally disrupted and referee Ben Davies quite rightly awarded a penalty try.

Almost from the restart Titans had their third try when back rower Lewis Allan picked-up from the base and dived over underneath the posts. Hayes added the extras to give his side a 19-0 half time lead.

The second period followed the pattern of the first with Rotherham controlling much of what went on and they secured the bonus point try just before the hour mark when hooker Jack Bergmanas dotted down from a catch and drive close to the line. Hayes impressed with his conversion from the touchline to make it 26-0.

To be fair to Hoppers they never stopped trying and they deservedly got something for their efforts shortly after when winger Will Clapham finished off after a nice chip through from fly half Will Hunt. The latter added the extras from in front to the posts.

Five minutes later however and normal service was resumed when Titans skipper Zak Poole powered over in the corner following a slick pass from Lloyd Hayes, although the latter was unsuccessful withy the conversion.

Nevertheless, three minutes from time Rotherham put the icing on the cake when a lovely inside pass from Lloyd Hayes found Jack Hedley who raced through to score under the sticks for a converted try.

Speaking after the game a contented Titans head coach, Gary Pearce said:

“We were pleased with parts of our game, but we’re not getting carried away as we know we still have a lot of work to do.

“I though Sam Veall had a good game at scrum half; I don’t think he’s worn that shirt since he was about 11 years-old. And whilst Lloyd had a good game at 10, that’s not his best position and I’d prefer him being a bit wider where he can be even more effective.

“I think at times we tried to play too much rugby, too quickly, but to outscore your opposition by 6 tries to 1 is not a bad effort. I thought we left a few more points out there, but from where we’ve come in a relatively short space of time and to have now won four on the trot is something we can be pleased with.”

Referee: Ben Davis

Attendance: 250

Yellow Card: Poole (Titans), Swarbrick (Preston)

Red Card: Mabaya (Preston)

Titans: Hedley (2T), Allan (T), Bergmanas (T), Poole (T), Penalty Try, Hayes (3C)

Preston Grasshoppers: Clapham (T), Hunt (1C)

Titans: 15 Jack Taylor, 14 Jack Hedley, 13 Harry Dunne, 28 Callum Bustin, 11 Luckas Sableman-Blue (Tucker 57), 10 Lloyd Hayes, 9 Sam Veall, 1 Charlie Capps (Donkor 30) (Capps 49), 2 Jack Bergmanas (Godden 62), 3 Danny Rylance (Denman 27) (Rylance 49) (Denman 68), 4 Matt Challinor (Donkor 72), 5 Theo Nwosu-Hope, 6 Lewis Allan, 7 Marcus Payne (Cambier 57), 8 Zak Poole (Capt.).

Replacements: 23 Aydan Godden, 17 Alastair Donkor, 29 Gareth Denman, 27 Cade Cambier, 21 George Tucker.   

Preston Grasshoppers: 15 Jacob Browne, 14 Will Clapham, 13 Harry Swarbrick, 12 Ed Kehoane (Pearson 54), 11 Tyler Spence (Orry 48), 10 Will Hunt (Kehoane 68), 9 Harry Moulding (Capt.) (Squirrell 54), 1 Oga Mabaya, 2 Olli Trippier (Thompson 40), 3 Matt Woodward, 4 Ewan Naylor, 5 Ally Murray, 6 Will Riley (Norrington 19), 7 Josh Longson, 8 Scott Richardson.

Replacements: 16 Harry Thompson, 17 George Orry, 18 Dec Norrington, 19 Jake Squirrell, 20 Ben Pearson. 

Chester 28 Titans 38

Rotherham Titans massively impressed as they beat Chester 38-28 on bright but cool afternoon at Hare Lane.

Rotherham outscored the home side by 6 tries to 3, with tries from Danny Rylance, Jack Taylor, Tomasi Tanumi, Callum Bustin, Zak Poole and Jack Hedley, with Lloyd Hayes adding 8 points from the tee.

The win moves Rotherham on to 65 points alongside Chester in the league, although Roth have played a game less and a strong finish to the season could see them end up in fifth spot, which after a mid-season slump would give everyone at the club some optimism for next season.

The game itself was an entertaining affair which saw the home side take the lead as early as the third minute when centre James Hampson raced through to dot down for Liam Reeve to convert.

Shortly afterwards however Rotherham levelled matters when a powerful drive from a line out was finished off by tighthead prop Danny Rylance; Lloyd Hayes maintained his push to become the league’s leading points scorer with the conversion.

The game wasn’t ten minutes old when Chester retook the lead after Liam Reeve’s accurate cross-field kick was expertly gathered by winger Ben Ivory who dotted down in the corner for an unconverted try.

Relative calmness followed as the next score didn’t arrive until the 23rd minute when a lovely chip over the top from Titans Lloyd Hayes was neatly collected by winger Jack Taylor to score a nice try.

The final score of the first 40 came before the half hour mark when Roth switched the direction of play in midfield before an interchange of passes between Tomasi Tanumi and Jack Taylor saw the former gallop through to score near the post for Hayes to convert and send Roth in at the break with a 19-12 lead.

The second period saw the hosts start much the brighter and a succession of penalties were conceded by Titans which resulted in Liam Reeve adding three kicks from the tee to give his side a 21-19 advantage.

Another flurry of scores was set to follow; on the hour mark Titans regained the lead when Callum Bustin collected and found a gap in the defence to charge through for a converted try, before 3 minutes later Chester back rower Kyle Joseph dotted down following a catch and drive close to the line.

However, five minutes later Rotherham retook the lead for the third time when skipper Zak Poole showed amazing strength to score following a break-off from a scrum close to the line. Lloyd Hayes converted to make it 33-28.

The game was finally wrapped up for Roth in the final play of the match when Chester coughed-up the ball whilst looking to snatch the game at the death. The lost ball was gathered and eventually found its way into the hands of winger Jack Hedley who showed good pace to score in the corner to seal an impressive and entertaining win for the South Yorkshire side.

Titans now have a week off for Ester before they welcome Preston Grasshoppers to Clifton Lane for their final home game of the season, before two away games at Harrogate and Sheffield Tigers, with the latter now being confirmed for the 29th of April.

Speaking after the match Titans head coach, Gary Pearce, said:

“I was really pleased with the lads, they showed a lot of effort and commitment and they played really well in parts. We know we have a lot of things to work on, but to come to Chester with their home record as it is and to get a bonus point win is an outstanding result.

“Chester are a good side, they battled very hard and they are a difficult team to beat on their own patch and I’m proud of the lads for the shift they have put in. We asked the lads to work hard and to put in a committed performance and that’s what they did and they can be very proud of themselves.

“We carried the ball really well when we got into the danger zones and we were powerful when we needed to be. I thought everyone played their part; I thought Danny Rylance had a great game, as did Zak Poole and Matt Challinor and I thought Sam Veall cleared up well at times and both the Jack’s on the wings looked quick when their turned on the gas.

“We know we’re not a bad side; we just have to make sure we put it together when it matters and that’s what the lads did today. We just have to keep it going now so we can finish off the season with some good performances for our supporters.”

Referee: George Ounsley

Attendance: 480

Yellow Card: Challinor (Titans), Lewtas & Long (Chester)

Titans: Rylance (T), Taylor (T), Tanumi (T), Bustin (T), Poole (T), Hedley (T), Hayes (4C)

Chester: Hampson (T), Ivory (T), Joseph (T), Reeve (2C, 3P)

Titans: 15 Lloyd Hayes, 14 Jack Hedley, 13 Tomasi Tanumi, 12 Harry Dunne, 11 Jack Taylor, 10 Joe Carlisle (Veall 14), 9 Kai Ramrattan (Allan 65), 1 Charlie Capps (Donkor 20), 2 Jack Bergmanas, 3 Danny Rylance, 4 Matt Challinor, 5 Theo Nwosu-Hope, 6 Marcus Payne (Bustin 49), 7 Rupert Kay, 8 Zak Poole (Capt.).

Replacements: 23 Aydan Godden, 17 Alastair Donkor, 16 Lewis Allan, 27 Callum Bustin, 20 Sam Veall.   

Chester: 15 Gethin Long, 14 Ben Ivory, 13 Jorge Lewtas, 12 James Hampson, 11 Sean Green (Craven 65), 10 Liam Reeve, 9 Tom Holloway, 1 Josh Woods (Croft 67), 2 Scott Robson (Woods 75), 3 Tom Furnival (Williams 67), 4 Harry Wilkinson (Capt.), 5 Mike Byrne (Freschini 66), 6 Kyle Joseph, 7 Shaun Owen (Lloyd 66), 8 Luke Cox.

Replacements: 17 Alick Croft, 18 Wade Williams, 19 Jimmy Lloyd, 20 Leo Freschini, 21 Charlie Craven.