DONCASTER 12 BARROW RAIDERS 36
SPENCER ARNOLD, Eco-Power Stadium, Wednesday
DONCASTER were outclassed and overpowered by a strong Barrow side expertly steered by halfback Ryan Johnston.
This rare midweek clash – one of the additional fixtures put into the Championship schedule after Featherstone were removed from the league – brought together two high-flyers level on eight wins.
But after a first half which seemed to showcase two evenly-matched sides, it was the Raiders who claimed victory number nine with a dominant second period.
Strong kick chases were the highlight of the opening minutes and brought reward for Barrow when makeshift winger Watson Boas dropped a sailing kick. The ball rolled into Joe Bullock’s path and he took advantage to open the scoring for the visitors.
Although the Dons looked to have built up some of their own momentum, the Raiders scored again when a high looping pass found its way to the hands of Curtis Teare, and he had the empty space to cross.
Brad Walker, perfect from the tee all night, converted both for a 12-0 lead but Doncaster managed to wipe that out, starting with a pacy, sidestepping run to the tryline from Connor Jones.
Seven minutes later, Doncaster clinched an equaliser, after some quick movement of the ball put Loui McConnell straight through underneath the sticks and Connor Robinson added conversions to both tries.
Building pressure from either side made the closing moments of the first half tense and gritty, and despite an attempt at scoring a field-goal being kept out by the Dons, the hosts could not keep the scoreline level for long and Walker powered his way over to the right of the sticks.
The second half began much like the first, with a focus on set completion and a heavy kicking game, with the ball once again soaring from one end of the pitch to the other.
However, it was the Raiders who once again opened the scoring, and they did it in style, with a pacy break through the Dons’ defence by Shane Toal, and then an offload to Ellis Robson, who had the open space to skip his way down to the tryline.
Strong and pinpointed kicks from Johnston kept the hosts far into their own half, allowing themselves room to manoeuvre their offensive line.
To extend the visitors’ lead further, Finley Dutton-Rosconie – making only his second professional appearance – got his name on the scoresheet after bouncing off the defence and rolling himself under the sticks in the 68th minute.
Barrow had fully run away with the game by this point, with a second-half domination that allowed them ample room to play slow and steady with the ball in hand.
And three minutes from time Alex Bishop gave his side a steep four-try margin as they took two deserved competition points back to Cumbria.
GAMESTAR: Barrow’s Ryan Johnston dominated the fixture with his heavy kicking game, with pin-pointed bombs and grubbers keeping the Dons well into their own half for most of the clash.
GAMEBREAKER: Brad Walker’s try just before half-time gave the Raiders the momentum and confidence they needed to go into the second half and play relaxed and effective rugby.
MATCHFACTS
DONCASTER
1 Tom Holmes
26 Mitieli Vulikijapani
3 Brad Hey
23 James Glover
24 Watson Boas
7 Connor Robinson
6 Cory Aston
8 Brad Knowles
19 Connor Jones
27 Titus Gwaze
14 Jacob Jones
12 Alex Sutcliffe
17 Muizz Mustapha
Subs (all used)
11 Sam Smeaton
13 Loui McConnell
16 Pauli Pauli
21 Tyla Hepi
Tries: C Jones (25), McConnell (32)
Goals: Robinson 2/2
RAIDERS
1 Luke Cresswell
5 Luke Broadbent
4 Curtis Teare
3 Shane Toal
25 Tee Ritson
6 Brad Walker
7 Ryan Johnston
10 Joe Bullock
17 Alex Bishop
16 Greg Richards
11 Ellis Robson
12 Matt Costello
13 Ryan King
Subs (all used)
2 Andrew Bulman
15 Charlie Emslie
30 Finley Dutton-Rosconie
32 Harvey Makin
Tries: Bullock (10), Teare (19), Walker (38), Robson (56), Dutton-Rosconie (68), Bishop (77)
Goals: Walker 6/6
SCORING SEQUENCE: 0-6, 0-12, 6-12, 12-12, 12-18; 12-24, 12-30, 12-36
Rugby Leaguer & League Express Men of the Match
Doncaster: Pauli Pauli; Raiders: Ryan Johnston
Penalty count: 4-4
Half-time: 12-18
Referee: Kevin Moore
Attendance: 1,465