Doncaster Knights 31 Yorkshire Carnegie 26: Promotion rivals whet appetite for semis

The second tier’s second and third best clubs, and the top two sides in the county, produced a contest full of tries, incidents, lead-changes and comebacks that vindicated Sky Television’s decision to screen the game live.

That Doncaster Knights won said everything about the form they are finding, the opportunism of raging centre Andy Bulumakau and their collective spirit that saw their 13 men withstand enormous pressure at the end.

That Yorkshire Carnegie lost points to a worrying lack of confidence at just the wrong time. For six months they looked the only realistic challengers to runaway promotion favourites London Irish, but five defeats in all competitions have left them still to cement their place in the top four.

“We have lost to Doncaster, Irish twice and Jersey – who a lot of teams have lost to this season,” observed Carnegie head coach Bryan Redpath.

“I’m not worried about confidence or performances.”

Privately he should be concerned about Carnegie’s propensity to switch off and drift through phases of games.

They showed ruthlessness in taking an early lead through impressive prop Lewis Boyce after he finished off a move he began with a bulldozing run into the home 22.

But for Carnegie to have then found themselves trailing 13-7 at the break will have left Redpath scratching his head. Joe Ford’s sin-binning for a knock-on did not immediately derail the visitors but Simon Humberstone crossed and then two Dougie Flockhart penalties put Doncaster in control.

Carnegie caught the hosts napping at the start of the second half when Chris Elder raced over after centre Tom Casson set him free down the right flank.

Visiting lock Mike Myerscough was adjudged to have held on as he tried to burrow under a sea of legs to reach the tryline as Carnegie threatened and within moments Bulumakau danced his way over from halfway for Doncaster.

He scored a second from an intercept of a reckless Ford pass and Carnegie found themselves 
31-14 down.

Josh Bainbridge raced over – twisting his ankle in the process – to give them a glimmer, and after Matt Challinor was sin-binned for Doncaster, Elder raced through for his second try.

Ford thought he had won it when he cut inside and darted between the posts, but a crossing route that had helped create the space had been spotted by the tough judge and the levelling try was ruled out.

Doncaster Knights: Jarvis, Flockhart, Bulumaku, Hayes, Lewis, Humberstone, Heaney; List (Bergmanas 67), Hunter (Nelson 71), Quigley (Sproston 69), Challinor, Young, Ram, Hiulls, Carpenter (Shaw 57). Unused replacements: Nolan, Edgerley, D Cusack.

Yorkshire Carnegie: Elder, Holmes, Lucock (Forsyth 47), Casson, Arscott, Ford, Davies (Green 55); Boyce, M Mayhew, M Cusack (Faletau 55), Myerscough, West (Smith 58), Stedman (Bainbridge 66 (Poole 72)), R Mayhew, Burrows. Unused replacements: Poole, Beasley, Bainbridge.