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[Ossy]

DEWSBURY RAMS 16 – BARROW RAIDERS 12.

This being the last game in the Northern Rail Cup preliminaries, it was a vital one for both sides so it was no great surprise that it should go right down to the wire. The early moments saw both sides taking turns on the offensive, though to be honest it was Barrow who made the more positive start, second row Ned Catic driving over for the opening try after 12 minutes or so and Jamie Rooney adding the conversion.

With two big packs slugging it out in the rain on a muddy pitch the tackles were flying in from all angles, though it was Barrow who drew the most penalties enabling Rams skipper Dominic Brambani to narrow the score to 4 - 6 in the 20th and 25th minutes. The latter offence earning Raiders sub Matt James 10 minutes in the bin.

After that uncertain start Dewsbury had quickly got into their stride and the game swung from end to end. On the whole the defences were ruling the roost and it was only on the verge of half time that the Rams got their reward, Brambani’s third penalty levelling the scores at 6 apiece.

The game was certainly a fierce one, and some of referee Craig Halloran’s decisions puzzled the supporters of both sides, though unfortunately they never allowed the game to flow the way it might have done. Ten minutes into the second half it was the Rams turn to lose a man to the bin, Jordan Tansey being dismissed 10 minutes into the half, but as it had proved in the first half, the advantage meant nothing as it was the Rams who were next on the scoreboard.

With Raiders pressing up on the final tackle, Brambani seemed to fumble the ball only to recollect it. The uncertainty was enough to halt the Barrow defence and the Rams halfback went through the gap before sending prop Anthony England over to the right of the posts before adding the conversion himself.

A few minutes later he also added another penalty that was to prove invaluable, only for Barrow to come right back at them with a try from second row Martin Ostler out on the left converted by Rooney.

At that point the game could still have gone either way, though 5 minutes later Barrow were again let down by their lack of discipline and Brambani slotted over his 5th penalty of the afternoon extending the Rams lead to 4 points.

Hard though they tried in those closing stages, Barrow proved unable to pierce a solid Rams defence, and though they had the better chances, the Rams drove them back with some impressive positional kicking from both Brambani and Jordan Tansey. But this was more than a two man show this was a team victory and the noisy reception given by the fans after the final whistle was well earned and fully deserved.

Final score :- Dewsbury Rams 16 Barrow Raiders 12

Dewsbury Rams :- 1. James Craven; 2. Michael Wainwright; 32. Elliot Cosgrove; 4. Scott Turner; 5. Austin Buchanan; 26. Jordan Tansey; 7. Dominic Brambani; 8. Anthony England; 9. Luke Blake; 10. Keegan Hirst; 11. Rob Spicer; 12. James Lockwood; 15. Josh Tonks.

Subs:- 23. Luke Menzies; 18. Shaun Emblem; 29. Matty Brooks; 31. Ben Bolger.

Barrow Raiders :- 16. Zeb Luisi; 2. Andy Ballard; 39. Joe Wardle; 4. Liam Harrison; 3. Chris Larkin; 6. Jamie Rooney; 40. Greg McNally; 38. Adam Walker; 18. Nathan Mossop; 13. Richard Fletcher; 11. Michael Knowles; 15. Martin Ostler; 12. Ned Catic.

Subs :- 8. Jamie Thackray; 10. Matt James; 9. Marc Gleeson; 21. Jamie Butler.

Referee :- Craig Halloran.

Attendance :- 911