Old Crossleyans make flying start to new year with Scarborough win
Old Crossleyans kicked-off the new year in Regional 2 North East with a thrilling 24-18 home victory over Scarborough.
The home side showed no signs of festive sluggishness, catching Scarborough cold during the early stages and establishing territorial advantage that resulted in Joe Stott crashing over the line following a quick tap penalty.
The early lead was quickly wiped out however as Scarborough increased their intensity and looked threatening with the ball in hand.
After seizing the momentum, the away team racked up three consecutive scores, following excellent flowing rugby on the back of strong running drives.
The half-time break came at a good time for the Crocs, allowing them to regroup and reorganise, and their defensive effort improved markedly in the second half.
It wasn’t long before territorial advantage was back with the home side, leading to further tries from James Johnson and Joel McFarlane.
Joe Gallagher then added a penalty score to stretch the lead to two scores with minutes left on the clock.
The game seemed to be over but Scarborough fought back with a quick penalty score and then chased the victory with constant attacking waves on the Crocs line.
However, the home defence remained strong to see out a well-earned victory.