York RI lost by a tiny margin for the second week running but, unlike the previous week, they were beaten because they played badly and squandered chances.

Hemsworth scored a 10-8 win in Yorkshire Three thanks to a last-minute try.

In driving rain and a strong wind, RI scored in the fifth minute when scrum-half Nick Ward broke from the base of a scrum and dummied over.

Strong runs from Stuart Watson, Tim Nash and Howard Reed almost resulted in further tries, but Hemsworth tackled well and the opportunities were lost.

A penalty by Matthew Yates increased RI's lead. However, just before the interval, Hemsworth scored a try, prop forward Connors getting the final touch at the end of a rolling maul

Ahead 8-5 at half-time, RI should have gone on to win but sloppy passing and poor decision-making allowed Hemsworth to weather the storm and start to put pressure on the home side.

Although play was scrappy, neither side looked capable of delivering the decisive blow until the final minute of the game when a try in the corner by Hemsworth's Ian Jackson gave the visitors victory.

Updated: 12:20 Monday, December 01, 2003