Aire take the spoils in derby thriller

Aire travelled the short distance to local rivals Baildon & the lads were looking to build some momentum ahead of next weeks Cup match.

First team coach Matt Osbourne has been assisting coaching the lads over the previous weeks and they were eager to impress and show what they could do.

The pack had to be shuffled due to withdrawals and and several injuries including skipper Jonny Ivory. In form back rower Joe Priestley was handed the captaincy & was to be supported by pack leader Eddie Farnell. The front row provided opportunities for Finn Eastcott, Tom Rudd and Ollie Flaxman to put a marker down, against what was a substantial opposition front three.

Aire started playing up hill and into the gentle breeze. Aire fielded the kick off and immediately hit a wall of solid tackling. Aire worked the pods, but gaining ground wasn’t easy and they were made to work hard for every metre.

It was attritional stuff, until Joe Priestley spotted a gap on the right and he picked a hole through the defensive line. Joe charged up field, but was hauled down by a desperate tackle. Unfortunately Joe was isolated & the ball was turned over & cleared by Baildon.

Baildon then got a foothold in the game and began to exert sustained pressure in Aire’s half. They had some lightning quick backs and Aire did well to corner flag on a couple of occasions to prevent what looked like certain tries. In particular the back 3 of Gus Smith, Jack Higgins & Freddy Pullan made a series f of timely tackles.

Aire were under the cosh and conceded a penalty at the breakdown & Baildon decided to have a kick at goal. There was reprieve for Aire as the kick was missed and a good clearance relieved pressure.

Aire’s scrum and lineout we’re going well, with the tight 5 digging deep to secure possession. Whilst the big lads up front were putting in a shift, the back row trio of Joe, Eddie & Ollie Nicholson we’re putting in overtime in the contact area & breakdown.

Rest bite was short lived, as Baildon turned the screw and marched back downfield. Aire yielded to the pressure & they opened the scoring with a well taken try to make it 7-0 at the interval.

Aire made a raft of changes for the second half and were bouyed that there was only one score in it & they now had the slope.

Aire pumped the restart deep into Baildon turf and a good kick chase pinned the home team deep in their 22. It was now Aire’s time to crank up the pressure, but a couple of sloppy handling errors coughed up good field position.

Baildon were pinged for not straight at the lineout & Aire opted for the scrum. The ball was shipped across the back line and Sammy Woodley found Lewis Rudd Watson cutting a great angle at full tilt. Lewis rampaged through Baildon’s defence to score under the sticks, which was duly converted.

Aire again found good field position & Lewis found space on the right. Lewis made 25 metres, but unfortunately he couldn’t get the ball away to the supporting players. Aire we’re knocking on the door, but credit to Baildon for last gasp tacking & then forcing a penalty.

Baildon got some field position and made a break down the left, which was snuffed out by Jack Dawson. The returning Haydon Picket made a great jackal & Aire were awarded a penalty. Aire shaped as if they were kicking for field position, but there was smart play from scrum half Eliot Bunn, when he saw that Baildon defence hadn’t set. His pass found stand off Harvey Sellers, who in turn fed Lewis with a well disguised pump pass. Lewis broke through and released Sammy Woodley who ran a great line. Sammy showed great gas to outpace a couple would be tacklers to score near the sticks to make it 14-7 to Aire.

The tide had turned and momentum was now well & truly with Aire. Harvey’s distribution and kicking was hurting Baildon and again they had a foothold in Baildon’s red zone. A series of meaty drives saw Aire a couple of metres out. Haydon Pickett picked up from the ruck and clattered his way over for a score, again converted by Josh Wood.

Aire were 21-7 up and wrongly thought it was job done & proceeded to take their foot off the gas. Eddie took a knock ans a couple of untimely substitutions disrupted fluency and didn’t help the cause. This gave Baildon some much needed possession & they too had plenty of fire power to respond. Aire shipped a couple of scores in as many minutes, leaving it 21-17 with 5 mins left on the clock.

This was to be a tense few minutes, with Baildon chucking everything at Aire in search of the winning score. A needless penalty put Baildon within Aire’s 22; however there was a reprieve with a crooked throw at the lineout. Aire scrambled well and closed out the game to record a hard fought victory.

In the main this was a good performance, although the lads will be disappointed to have let Baildon back in the game.

There were some solid performances, with special mention to the front row, who played a full game & put in a shift against formidable opposition. The locks worked hard throughout & Calum made an impact upon his return from injury.

There were some revved up players who came on from the bench, who clearly had a point to make & threw a marker down. Lewis & Sammy were fantastic & they provided the impetus in the 2nd half.

Aire are away at Scarborough next Sunday in the 1st round of the Yorkshire Bowl competition.