Never has the phrase 'a game of two halves' seemed so apt.

York Wasps turned in the performance of their lives in the first half yesterday to threaten one of the upsets of the season against Dewsbury Rams.

The play-off hopefuls were rocked by a brilliant 40 minutes of strong defence and direct running which held them to 6-6 at half-time.

But after the break the Wasps' tackling fell apart while Dewsbury improved dramatically to run in 11 tries and an amazing 62 points.

Chief instigator was scrum-half Barry Eaton who weighed in with four tries and ten goals for a points tally of 36. That broke the club record of 32 set by Les Holliday in 1994.

But the Wasps can still hold their heads high after their stunning opening spell which shocked the visiting fans into silence.

Perhaps it was the fact Dewsbury had to wear York's away shirts in the first half after they forgot to bring their own that affected the Rams so badly.

Or more likely they had come to Huntington Stadium expecting a walkover and paid the price.

Error followed error as the Rams tried to force passes that weren't on and dropped balls under the pressure of the Wasps' tenacious tackling.

There were chances at both ends early on. Dewsbury hooker Richard Pachniuk was held up over the line and Gareth Oulton went in from close range for the Wasps only for the try to be ruled out for crossing.

But York made no mistake on 25 minutes. Former Wasp Mark Cain failed to take Eaton's pass from a scrum inside his own 20-metre zone and full-back Mike Hall pounced to scoot over under the sticks, leaving Danny Waite, who had come on just a minute earlier for Oulton, to add on the extras.

It was deserved reward for all their hard work but just three minutes later Dewsbury hit back.

Eaton dummied and sidestepped passed two players to open up a huge gap and touch down, but missed a relatively easy conversion.

He made amends just before half-time when the Rams were awarded a penalty in front of the sticks for ripping the ball out - which looked harsh on the Wasps - and Eaton converted the simple kick.

There was an element of shock in the air at half-time with both sets of fans bemused by the scenes they had just witnessed.

At least if we lose it shouldn't be by many, said the York fans. How wrong can you get?

Maybe it was a return to their own away strip, which had finally arrived from Dewsbury, but something certainly stirred up the Rams.

It took them just a minute to edge in front for the first time. Mick Ramsden knocked on from the kick-off handing the Rams crucial possession 20 metres from the York line.

They made it count, Pachniuk going over from dummy half despite being swung round by Hall and Carl Bristow.

Six minutes later they were in again after a rare mistake by impressive debutant winger Gavin Molley.

He couldn't take Eaton's high kick and the ball bounced up perfectly for full-back Matthew Griffin to feed winger Richard Baker for the first of his tries.

With Eaton missing both conversions, the Rams were only 14-6 ahead.

But as Dewsbury piled on the pressure the resistance crumbled.

Baker went on to complete a hat-trick, Eaton went in for another three, former Heworth starlet centre Dan Potter helped himself to a brace and strong-running second-rower Jim Leatham and Griffin scored one apiece.

It was a sad end for the Wasps but they proved they can compete, at least for part of the game, with the best.

York: Mike Hall, Phil Musgrave, Callum Irving, Matt Mulholland, Gavin Molloy, Mark Dooley, Gareth Oulton, Andy Hutchinson, Darren Crake, Nathan Pincher, Mick Ramsden. Subs (all used): Danny Waite, Steve Robinson, Carl Bristow, Andy Innes.

Tries: Hall (25 mins). G: Waite

Dewsbury: Matthew Griffin, Richard Baker, Nathan Graham, Dan Potter, Adrian Flynn, Mark Cain, Barry Eaton, Andy Fisher, Richard Pachniuk, Robin Jowitt, Ian Hughes, Jim Leatham, Damian Ball. Subs: Kevin Crouthers (not used), Ryan McDonald, Danny Burton, Andrew Spink.

Tries: Eaton (28, 54, 67, 69), Pachniuk (41), Baker (47, 51, 73), Potter (48, 80), Leatham (63), Griffin (76). G: Eaton 10.

Attendance: 425

Referee: Nick Oddy (Halifax)