KEIGHLEY COUGARS 29 HALIFAX PANTHERS 20
EMMA KENNEDY, Cougar Park, Sunday

IT was 16th time lucky for Keighley as they finally got one over on Halifax.

The Cougars lost out to a late field-goal in the sides’ last meeting three years ago, but doubles from Emmanuel Waine and Alfie Dean spearheaded a deserved win this time around. 

A busy week had seen Jonny Vaughan and Zach Fishwick come through the doors at Halifax whilst Myles Lawford and Kian McGann also returned to the club.

Keighley, meanwhile, handed a first start of the season to Brandon Pickersgill in the halves, whilst Oli Whitford moved out to the wing in place of Dee Foggin-Johnston (concussion).

It was a poignant day at Cougar Park, with both sets of supporters paying their respects to former player Danny Jones on the eleventh anniversary of his passing with a minute’s applause prior to kick-off, and again in the sixth minute.

After kick-off had been delayed by 15 minutes due to crowd congestion, Keighley looked to delight their supporters early on.

Ben Tibbs’ ball-spill offered them the first chance of the game in the fifth minute, but George Flanagan was brought down just short from a dummy-half dart as the chance went begging.

It was instead the Panthers that drew first blood against the run of play with 14 minutes played as McGann won the foot race to ground Lawford’s grubber into the right corner. The latter superbly converted from the touchline.

Keighley hit back six minutes later, the pressure from a penalty and repeat set eventually telling on the Halifax defence as Izaac Farrell crashed over from close range, the halfback converting his own try to level the scores.

There was little to separate the sides for most of the opening half, with both completing their sets but failing to threaten the tryline.

Halifax edged back ahead just before the half-hour in a near carbon-copy of their opening try, this time Ben Will grounding Lawford’s grubber out wide. 

However, they couldn’t hold on to their lead, and they fell behind on the stroke of half-time after giving away a penalty on their 10-metre line.

Nobody laid a hand on Emmanuel Waine as he dummied his way through to score behind the posts, with Farrell’s conversion handing Keighley a slender two-point lead at the break. 

The hosts thought they had edged further ahead within two minutes of the restart after Max Clarke won the race to a grubber, but referee Denton Arnold controversially ruled the score out for a knock-on.

But they were celebrating again in the 51st minute when Waine broke a tackle and raced 60 metres, before rounding McGann to score next to the posts, Farrell converting.

Halifax looked to respond immediately when Farrell fumbled the restart, but they came up with an error as Keighley’s blushes were spared.

A quick-fire Alfie Dean double instead widened the gap to 28-10, the Keighley centre rising highest to a cross-field chip before finishing off a neat move into the right corner. Farrell converted the former but not the latter.

Vila Halafihi darted out of dummy half as Halifax reduced the deficit with 12 minutes remaining after a spell of pressure on the Keighley line, but Farrell’s field-goal extended out the margin again.

Halifax refused to give up, seeing the better of the closing stages, but Will’s second try with two minutes remaining proved a mere consolation.

GAMESTAR: Emmanuel Waine proved a handful for the Halifax defence, with his brace of tries a just reward.

GAMEBREAKER: Waine’s tries either side of half-time proved crucial for Keighley, who kicked on from there.

MATCHFACTS

COUGARS
1 Connor Sayner
18 Oli Whitford
21 Alfie Dean
4 Max Clarke
2 Brad Holroyd
24 Brandon Pickersgill
6 Izaac Farrell
11 Lucas Green
14 George Flanagan
17 Jordan Schofield
12 Lachlan Lanskey
34 Jacob Stead
13 Aaron Brown
Subs (all used)
8 Dan Parker
9 Oli Burton
26 Nathan Rushworth
33 Emmanuel Waine

Tries: Farrell (21), Waine (40, 51), Dean (55, 62)
Goals: Farrell 4/5
Field-goals: Farrell (76)

PANTHERS
1 Kian McGann
2 Ben Tibbs
19 Zack McComb
11 Ben Crooks
3 Ben Will
6 Jesse Soric
17 Myles Lawford
18 Hugo Salabio
9 Adam O’Brien
24 Delaine Gittens-Bedward
13 Jacob Fairbank
5 Jonny Vaughan
15 Connor Davies
Subs (all used)
7 Curtis Davies
20 Vila Halafihi
21 Ben Forster
25 Zach Fishwick

Tries: McGann (14), Will (29, 78), Halafihi (68)
Goals: Lawford 2/4

SCORING SEQUENCE: 0-6, 6-6, 6-10, 12-10; 18-10, 24-10, 28-10, 28-16, 29-16, 29-20

Rugby Leaguer & League Express Men of the Match
Cougars: Emmanuel Waine; Panthers: Myles Lawford

Penalty count: 6-7
Half-time: 12-10
Referee: Denton Arnold