YORKSHIRE 42 LANCASHIRE 10
IAN GOLDEN, Mend-A-Hose Jungle, Castleford, Saturday
YORKSHIRE eased to victory in the first match of the Academy Origin series with an excellent team performance, dominating for the vast majority of the game.
They stamped their authority on the match and took the lead after just five minutes when Harley Thomas intercepted well to run 20 metres and score in the corner.
The second try came just two minutes later after a Lancashire error from the kick-off. A good passing move culminated in Marcus Qareqare slipping through and grounding near to the sticks, and Thomas added the first of five successful conversions.
Lancashire hit back on twelve minutes. Yorkshire’s Archie Sykes was sin-binned for a high tackle and, from the resulting penalty, Ewan Irwin set up Flynn Holden to ground.
After keeping the visitors out for the remainder of the time they were a player down, the hosts scored again soon after Sykes’ return.
It was another fantastic set of passes, ending in some clever play from Lloyd Kemp, selling a dummy and opening a gap for himself to score and restore a ten-point white-rose lead.
Yorkshire kept up the pressure and were soon over for a fourth time as Chris Matagi picked up a short pass and fought off his markers to crash over.
And from the next set after the kick-off, Yorkshire got their fifth. Matagi was stopped in his tracks and, from the following play, Joe Diskin dived under the sticks.
Thomas, who had converted to give his side a 26-4 lead at the break, took less than three minutes to increase it at the start of the second half, grounding in the corner for his second try.
Yorkshire again kept building up the pressure and the Lancastrians couldn’t cope with it. George Brown was next over, following good teamwork in the build-up.
Lancashire struck back just after the hour thanks to a touch of individual class from Thomas Humphries, who had worked hard throughout the game.
Ewan Irwin converted to help bring some respectability back to the scoreline, although Yorkshire weren’t allowing a comeback. as Zac Lloyd slipped through nicely for his side’s eighth try.
Thomas converted to cement the win, and was denied a hat-trick of tries in the final move of the game.
This year’s Academy Origin is only a two-match series with the other meeting also taking place in Yorkshire, at Hull KR’s Sewell Group Craven Park on August 2.
GAMESTAR: Lloyd Kemp was here, there and everywhere, scoring a try and impressing in attack and defence.
GAMEBREAKER: Yorkshire always looked like winners, but when they went 36-4 up on 48 minutes there was absolutely no coming back.
MATCHFACTS
YORKSHIRE
1 Lloyd Kemp (Hull FC)
2 Alfie Lindsay (Castleford Tigers)
3 Jacob Hardy (Leeds Rhinos)
4 Marcus Qareqare (Leeds Rhinos)
5 Harley Thomas (Leeds Rhinos)
6 George Brown (Leeds Rhinos)
7 Callum Kemp (Hull FC)
8 Joe Butterfield (Leeds Rhinos)
9 Joe Diskin (Leeds Rhinos)
10 Ellis Lingard (Wakefield Trinity)
11 Zac Lloyd (Leeds Rhinos)
12 Alfie Sykes (Huddersfield Giants)
13 Presley Cassell (Leeds Rhinos)
Subs (all used)
14 Harry Smith (Leeds Rhinos)
15 Chris Matagi (St Helens)
16 Daniel Stelfox (Leeds Rhinos)
17 Jacob Stead (Leeds Rhinos)
Tries: Thomas (5, 43), Qareqare (7), L Kemp (23), Matagi (29), Diskin (33), Brown (48), Lloyd (67)
Goals: Thomas 5/8
Sin bin: Sykes (11, high tackle)
LANCASHIRE
1 Flynn Holden (Warrington Wolves)
2 Austin Daniel (Wigan Warriors)
3 Fin Yeomans (Wigan Warriors)
4 Charlie Walker (Warrington Wolves)
5 Lachlan Webster (Warrington Wolves)
6 Kian McGann (St Helens)
7 Ewan Irwin (Warrington Wolves)
8 Shea O’Connor (Wigan Warriors)
9 Thomas Humphries (St Helens)
10 Kian Stanton (Warrington Wolves)
11 Oliver Garmston (St Helens)
12 Billy Keeley (St Helens)
13 Matt Evans (St Helens)
Subs (all used)
14 Daniel Regan (Warrington Wolves)
15 Alfie Tate (St Helens)
16 Jake Ramsden (Warrington Wolves)
17 Cameron Bate (Bradford Bulls)
Tries: Holden (12), Humphries (61)
Goals: Irwin 1/2
SCORING SEQUENCE: 4-0, 10-0, 10-4, 14-4, 20-4, 26-4, 30-4, 36-4, 36-10, 42-10
Rugby Leaguer & League Express Men of the Match
Yorkshire: Lloyd Kemp; Lancashire: Thomas Humphries
Half-time: 26-4
Referee: Carl Hughes