Selby crashed to their fourth defeat in succession as they fell 20-13 at Wheatley Hills and down to ninth in the Yorkshire One table.

They led 10-0 after 20 minutes but a combination of poor tackling, handling errors and indiscipline let Hills back into the game and consign the visitors to their sixth defeat at a ground where they have never won in league rugby.

Selby began on top and, after Hills had missed a penalty against the run of play, took the lead on 18 minutes with a penalty by fly-half Dan Porter.

A dropped ball by the backs had prevented one try-scoring opportunity by then but the pack made no such mistakes when a catch and drive from a lineout led to hooker Shane Sellers touching down.

Porter converted for the ten-point lead but then missed a penalty from half-way and Selby soon conceded a try from an attacking position as Hills' Lee Plevey, aided by some poor tackling, touched down.

The hosts levelled two minutes before the break with a penalty by fly-half Ashley Hanson and could have gone ahead but missed two penalties in first-half stoppage time, the second of which also saw Selby winger Martin Protheroe yellow-carded for dissent.

Selby rang the changes in the forwards at the break with Richard Fuller replacing Paul Gabel and Kevin Lowery replacing Duncan Phillips, but Lowery was soon back on the bench as he too was yellow-carded for coming in from the side of a ruck to deny the hosts a scoring opportunity.

Hanson booted the penalty to put Hills ahead.

Some excellent defending by Selby when down to 13 men kept the deficit to three points and they levelled things with a Porter penalty on the hour.

But a comedy of errors by the Selby defence on 67 minutes gave Hills the upper hand again. A scrum to Hills on their own 30-metre line was pushed back by the Selby forwards, who generally had the measure of their opponents, but somehow the ball squirted out on the Wheatley side. The ball was hacked on into Selby territory and the defence, instead of falling on it, joined in the impromptu game of soccer, with the ball eventually being picked up for home flanker John Ball to go over, Hanson converting.

Selby pressed in the last ten minutes but their best chance was missed and Hills could have upped their lead but missed a stoppage-time penalty.

Updated: 10:06 Monday, November 21, 2005