NEW York City Knights player-coach Paul March was given food for thought after his youthful side were held to a 22-22 draw by a York Select XIII.

The Knights needed a try ten minutes from time from prop Andy Bailey, the senior player in the ranks, to draw them level after they had earlier trailed 18-6, having let in two tries while the representative team were down to 12 men.

It was a workmanlike performance from March's young troops, and they showed character to fight back with the wind in their faces. It wasn't particularly spectacular, though, and they will hope for more invention from the big-guns - including scrum-half March himself - when they come into the team for the friendlies with Wakefield and Leeds.

The Select side, put together at short notice by former Knight Mick Ramsden, played with surprising cohesion given they had trained together only twice.

Credit thus goes to Ramsden, assistant-coach Alan Pallister and the old general Lee Jackson, who led the team around the field superbly, for giving the Knights such a good run-out on a difficult windy day.

Such a test didn't look on the cards when the Knights went ahead on six minutes. A clever dummy and kick from Andy Gargan, at scrum-half, was touched down by centre John Oakes for fellow new boy Danny Ratcliffe to convert.

Ratcliffe, at stand-off, looked dangerous when on the run, and it was a relief to see him return having been helped off the field in the first half after taking a blow.

New hooker Paul Hughes showed a feisty edge, and new second-row Ross Divorty promise, while Steve Grundy also did well at loose-forward with a couple of scything darts. However, the ball didn't go wide often - so fans got few glimpses of the new back line.

The offload game wasn't quite on the button either - and it was left to old boy Craig Forsyth to show how it's done. The retired prop got the ball out of the tackle a couple of times, before setting up the equaliser on the half-hour mark when bursting through from 20 yards and feeding fellow sub Steve Waldron, who finished well, Leigh Rientoul goaling.

A superb break by Luke Judson nearly brought the Select side a second try, but it instead preceded a penalty against them, and a yellow card for Carl Barrow, presumably for questioning young referee Gareth Evans' decision.

However, the one-man disadvantage hardly hindered Ramsden's team. The Knights' Kyle Palmer and new centre Matt Danville both went close at the start of the second half after full-back Lee Mapals - exciting as ever - had superbly caught the kick-off which held up in the wind.

But the rep team defended stoutly and, immediately after Chris Varley was held over the line at the other end, Waldron again finished well through a crowd of players, though he probably should not have been allowed to.

Waldron was a York Acorn ARLC team-mate of former Knight Lee McTigue - in whose honour yesterday's game was played after he lost his battle with cancer last month - and he was named man of the match by McTigue's widow, Lynne.

It got better for the Select XIII when former Knights captain Dan Potter, with his first touch after coming on, supported a move in centre-field, blasted through two tackles, got up and reached the line. A point proved, perhaps, by a man who has rejected the club's much-reduced contract offer.

It needed some individual brilliance from Mapals to bring the Knights back into the game, a minute after their opposition were back to full strength. Last year's top try-scorer, a late call-up after Danny Grimshaw pulled out with a groin strain, jinked this way and that before somehow finding a way through a packed defence.

The Knights wasted chances to turn the screw and it needed luck - or enterprise, depending on your viewpoint - for them to score again. Gargan's harmless kick found young winger David Leeke on the touchline and, knowing it was the sixth tackle, he booted the ball towards the posts, where Ratcliffe gathered on the bounce to score unopposed and convert.

Jackson, retaining much of the old the know-how - and the occasional crowd-pleasing trick - which brought him Great Britain caps, returned to the field and helped set up a try for Timmy Elliott down the left to stretch the Select's side lead to 22-16.

But Bailey, who looked solid throughout, trampled over a poor tackle to score, with Ratcliffe's goal levelling matters. Gargan's late drop-goal attempt was charged down leaving honours deservingly even.


Knights: Mapals, Leeke, Danville, Oakes, Ferris, Ratcliffe, A Gargan, Endersby, Hughes, Bailey, Divorty, Kelly, Grundy.

Subs (all used): Hodgson, Blaney, O Wilcox-Harrison, Palmer, Watling, Jack Stearman.

York Select: Perks, Joe Stearman, Matt Embleton, Mike Embleton, Rientoul, Callaghan, Elliott, Caldwell, Jackson, Clarke, Barrow, McTigue, Judson.

Subs (all used): Forsyth, Varley, Wright, Willitts, S Waldron, L Gargan, Potter.

Referee: Gareth Evans (York).

Attendance: 869.