York Knights atone in dominant 27-0 rout of Doncaster

Just one point separated the sides on the fringes of the Betfred Championship play-offs ahead of kick-off, but the Knights were on top in every department in the pouring rain without being entirely spectacular.

There was little to separate the sides in a cagey opening to proceedings until Sam Cook burrowed over out of dummy half to break the deadlock with nine minutes played.

Will Dagger then slotted over a penalty before Connor Robinson was sent to the sin-bin for his tackle on the full-back, the Knights soon capitalising on their man advantage to send the in-form Joe Brown across into the right corner.

They came within a whisker of adding to that advantage within 90 seconds of the restart after Brad Ward surged into the left corner, only to see his diving effort ruled out, but the same decision did not befell interchange Oli Field as he crashed over four minutes later.

Dagger added a second penalty on the hour before Brown doubled his afternoon’s tally, the former then adding gloss to the scoreline with a last-minute drop-goal to see the Knights leapfrog their opponents and move up to seventh.

But it did not come without cost, with captain Liam Harris substituted at half time with a hamstring issue, and half-back partner Hingano left with a suspected eye socket fracture.

MATCH RECAP: York Knights 27-0 Doncaster

Applegarth made just one change to the side that thrashed Barrow Raiders last weekend, with Jimmy Keinhorst returning to start in the centres after attending Rob Burrow’s funeral.

That saw Field drop to the bench in place of Harvey Reynolds, who was instead a water boy alongside Brenden Santi.

Doncaster’s line-up saw both Robinson and Brad Hey face off against their former club, whilst experienced ex-Super League stars Luke Briscoe, Reece Lyne and Brett Ferres were also handed starts, but destructive forward Pauli Pauli missed out through suspension.

Neither side were able to make early headway in the persistent rain, though it was the Knights who enjoyed the best field position, having been handed a penalty for a high tackle on Ward, but Hingano’s grubber was comfortable for Doncaster to defend.

Robinson looked to inject some life into the visitors with a testing high ball that was allowed to bounce, but though Dagger appeared to have been caught high, nothing was given by referee Cameron Worsley until an offside three tackles later.

Harris drilled the resultant penalty to the 20-metre line, with the Knights bringing themselves onto the board as Cook darted out of dummy half next to the posts after the impressive Connor Bailey had been brought down just short.

Dagger could not miss his conversion.

Sam Cook opened the scoring with a dummy half dart. (Image: Craig Hawkhead Photography)

Former Wakefield centre Lyne showcased some sparkling footwork as Doncaster looked for an immediate response, but they instead found themselves further behind after an off-the-ball challenge presented Dagger with the chance to add another two points.

York could not capitalise on the field position gained from Harris’ 40/20 from the restart, the Dons instead mounting their best attack of the afternoon after being awarded a penalty, and then a scrum on the 10-metre line – but Jason Tali’s pass to Bureta Faraimo sailed into touch.

Pressure though continued to build for the visitors, who thought that they had won a goal-line drop-out, only for Robinson to catch Dagger high as he looked to field a grubber and instead be sent for 10 minutes on the sidelines.

And the Knights duly capitalised on their numerical advantage, with a push on Brown handing them back possession on the 20-metre line.

After having initially gone left, Harris switched the play back to the right edge, Bailey throwing a sublime cut-out pass to Brown, who sold Faraimo a dummy before crashing over into the corner.

Dagger missed his only attempt from the tee, seeing his touchline effort come back off the right-hand post, but his side still held a comfortable 12-0 half-time lead.

Joe Brown collected Connor Bailey's sublime cut-out pass before flying into the right corner. (Image: Craig Hawkhead Photography)

The Knights lost captain Harris to a hamstring strain at the interval, seeing Cook switch into the halves, but they were undeterred.

Josh Guzdek’s fumble handed them a fantastic opportunity to resume the scoring within 90 seconds of the restart, but Ward’s flying effort was ruled out for a knock-on in the build-up.

However, the hosts were not left aggrieved for long, as after Keelan Foster had let the ball slip from his grasp on his 30-metre line, Field won the race to Hingano’s grubber to touch down to the left of the posts.

Three tries almost became four after Cook’s kick had forced Doncaster into conceding the game’s first drop-out, but Ward could not reel in Dagger’s cross-field chip.

The introduction of the highly experienced Craig Hall saw the visitors threaten to hit back after winning a penalty on the 40-metre line, with Field timing his jump to perfection to claim Guzdek’s improvised kick on the last.

York instead increased their lead from the tee after Jordan Thompson had been caught high just outside the 10-metre line on the hour.

Opportunities continued to fall the hosts’ way, with Dagger knocking-on before Hingano kicked a stunning 40/20, paving the way for Luke Briscoe to concede another drop-out.

Cook came within a whisker of adding his second of the match after crashing onto Hingano’s short pass, but he was instead met with the base of the right-hand post.

However, the Knights weren’t kept out for much longer after a mistake from former Leeds Rhinos centre Ferres, Nikau Williams reacting quickest to break through Doncaster’s defensive line and feed the supporting Brown to complete his brace.

Dagger converted with ease and had the final word with less than a minute remaining, slotting over a drop-goal after the Dons had conceded another drop-out to complete a fantastic afternoon for Applegarth’s side.

YORK KNIGHTS: Dagger, Brown, Williams, Keinhorst, Ward, Harris, Hingano, Fitzsimmons, Cook, Thompson, Gannon, Bailey, Cunningham.

INTERCHANGES: Field, Teanby, Michael, Daley.

TRIES: Cook (9), Brown (36, 74), Field (46)

GOALS: Dagger 5/6

DROP-GOAL: Dagger (79)

DONCASTER: Guzdek, Briscoe, Lyne, Tali, Faraimo, Boas, Robinson, Knowles, Lovodua, Matagi, Hey, Ferres, Wilde.

INTERCHANGES: Foster, McConnell, Hall, Mafi

SIN-BIN: Robinson (27)

POINTS SEQUENCE: 4-0, 6-0, 8-0, 12-0, 16-0, 18-0, 20-0, 24-0, 26-0, 27-0

HALF TIME: 12-0

YORK’S STAR MAN: Jordan Thompson. A stellar performance from 1-17 for the Knights, but the ever-present was outstanding across 80 minutes in the middles, no mean feat.

REFEREE: Cameron Worsley