Fit again Shaun Austerfield believes the underdog tag will aid York Wasps' bid for a play-off place this season.

The Wasps opened their Northern Ford Premiership campaign with a 26-8 home defeat by Doncaster Dragons yesterday.

It was a marked improvement from the 36-1 defeat suffered in the corresponding fixture last season as the Wasps proved more than a match for a side considered to be one of the title favourites.

And while the result was one the majority of pundits predicted, the Wasps' performance will have caused a few teams to sit up and take notice.

"I think people have been writing us off," said Austerfield, after making his second substitute appearance following his long injury lay-off. "People say we will only be a mid-table team but we're confident we can finish in the top eight.

"It gives us more confidence with people writing us off. We're just keeping quiet and getting on with it.

"Under Lee Crooks everybody is enjoying training and everybody's learning new things all the time. It's a new team and we're only young. We're all on a learning curve.

"We're just going to look forward and build. It can only get better."

Austerfield missed much of last season after damaging knee ligaments and his return to fitness couldn't have come at a better time for Crooks.

Having switched from centre to the second row, he will become a valuable acquisition for the forwards following a potentially serious injury to prop forward Andy Precious.

Precious was forced off the field less than a minute into yesterday's game with a suspected broken ankle.

That was the only black mark on an otherwise encouraging display, though Crooks was disappointed not to have picked up a shock win.

"We haven't got any points but to be fair to the players all you can ask is to give 100 per cent and everyone has done that. Unfortunately that wasn't good enough, but if they do that every week and improve every week then everybody will be happy," said the Wasps' boss.

"I believe we had chances to win. We didn't primarily because we turned the ball over too many times and gave away too much possession."

The game-breaking try came from ex-Wasp Peter Edwards 13 minutes from time, until which York were just 12 points behind and looking the better side.

Even more galling for York was that the try followed a controversial decision by referee Ron Laughton. A Doncaster kick appeared to bounce over the dead ball line but Laughton ruled that York full-back Jamie Benn had touched the ball and awarded a drop out.

From the next set of six Edwards scored and Crooks reflected: "That was a decision which made things hard for us. Up to then we were coming back into the game.

"The touch judge was signalling for a 20 metre tap and everyone knew it had gone dead but the referee said Jamie touched it."