HALIFAX PANTHERS 14 GOOLE VIKINGS 18
JACOB KILBRIDE, The Shay, Sunday

GOOLE produced one of the best wins of the round by staging an almighty comeback.

Halifax fans must have been dreaming of a potential tilt at Super League opponents in round four after tries by Bayley Liu, Ben Tibbs and Jesse Soric helped build a commanding 14-0 lead inside 30 minutes.

But the Vikings rallied to score three times in a dozen minutes either side of half-time through Nick Staveley, Oli Morgan and Keenen Tomlinson to nudge in front, before a spell of incredibly determined defence denied a stream of Panthers chances.

In just their second season as a professional club, this could well rank as Goole’s greatest win, while Halifax will be scratching their heads at how they let tie slip away.

It looked to be a question of how many the home side would win by after they took a seventh-minute lead. Soric delayed a pass to Tanguy Zenon, who put Liu over.

Shane Tuohey then dropped a Soric kick and straight from the scrum, Tibbs slid over from another Zenon assist.

On 28 minutes, some dazzling Soric footwork enabled him to step between two defenders and allowed Myles Lawford to convert for a three-score lead.

But two quickfire Goole tries before the break changed the complexion of the contest.

Ex-Keighley talisman Jack Miller hoisted a high kick which the casual-looking Darius Carter dropped straight into the path of Staveley, who finished from close range. Miller converted.

Zenon was then next to fail to catch a Miller bomb, allowing Morgan to squirm through a gaping hole in the tryline from the resultant set. Again the score was improved.

The expected second-half response from Halifax was not forthcoming, and instead it was Goole who raced out of the blocks.

Callum Rutland made a clean break from the restart before Miller’s wide-right kick was put dead by Tibbs for a goal-line drop-out.

From there, Andre Savelio offloaded into the hands of Miller, who delivered an inch-perfect low crossfield kick for Tomlinson to slide over. Miller remained perfect from the tee.

The remainder of the tie followed a similar pattern as Goole conceded penalty after penalty to gift Halifax a series of opportunities, all of which were met by stern and stubborn defence.

Zenon might have added two more assists to his tally but sent passes behind Tibbs and then yards in front of the winger from a tip ball, on both occasions with the try-line begging.

On the right flank, Lawford sent a looping pass out to Carter, only for the ball to bounce out of his grasp mere metres out from the whitewash.

The Goole defence deserved immense credit, with efforts on Liu from a pushed power play and Carter from another attempted Zenon assist highlights of their defiance at the back.

The visitors almost rubber-stamped victory at the death via another Morgan dummy-half scoot before Miller skewed a field-goal attempt.

In the final minute, Soric dummied through from halfway before somehow being hauled short by the posts in one last act of Goole resistance. then with overlaps on both edges, Lawford booted his wide right kick out on the full, sparking the visitors’ celebrations.

GAMESTAR: Goole scrum-half Jack Miller had a hand in all three of the Vikings’ tries, with his sumptuous crossfield kick to Keenen Tomlinson the pick of his creative output.

GAMEBREAKER: Jesse Soric could so nearly have won it for Halifax at the end after his mesmeric line-break before a play later, Myles Lawford opted against running the ball through hands, instead kicking out on the full when trying to pick out winger Charlie Graham.

MATCHFACTS

PANTHERS
3 Tanguy Zenon
2 Ben Tibbs
18 Bayley Liu
5 Charlie Graham
22 Darius Carter
6 Jesse Soric
17 Myles Lawford
8 Will Calcott
9 Adam O’Brien
21 Ben Forster
12 Owen McCarron
24 Brad Day
14 Tom Inman
Subs (all used)
7 Jack Hansen
10 Dan Okoro
13 Jacob Fairbank
16 Ronan Dixon

Tries: Liu (7), Tibbs (13), Soric (28)
Goals: Lawford 1/3

VIKINGS
20 Shane Tuohey
5 Callum Shaw
3 Cooper Howlett
4 Keenen Tomlinson
19 Connor Barley
22 Callum Rutland
7 Jack Miller
10 Tyler Craig
9 Jeylan Hodgson
30 Liam Watts
32 Andre Savelio
12 Nick Staveley
13 Harry Aldous
Subs (all used)
14 Oli Morgan
16 Harry Medlicott
17 Jack Coventry
31 Will Jubb

Tries: Staveley (32), Morgan (37), Tomlinson (44)
Goals: Miller 3/3

SCORING SEQUENCE: 4-0, 8-0, 14-0, 14-6, 14-12, 14-18

Rugby Leaguer & League Express Men of the Match
Panthers: Adam O’Brien; Vikings: Jack Miller

Penalty count: 11-6
Half-time: 14-12
Referee: Luke Bland