Dewsbury Rams 83 - 6 Hunslet Hawks

Match report by Ossy.

I had a dream today. I dreamed the Rams had one of those days when almost every pass went to hand, every kick floated down the wind, (or down the hill whichever you prefer), before curving away into touch. One of those days when even the referee and touch judges were reduced to peripheral roles.

And what a dream it was. A record equalling haul of 13 goals for Francis Maloney. 14 tries from 11 different players, and the most scintillating display of attacking football I've seen from the Red, Amber and Blacks in the 48 years I've been following them. Man of the Match went to Alex Bretherton, though it could equally have gone to almost any one of the 17 or, better still, to ALL of them. The only downside is the thought that it might be another 48 years before I see the like again.

The first ten minutes were fairly even, until Andy Bostock forced his way over out on the right, goaled by Francis Maloney. Despite Andy Hobson being yellow carded for a minor disagreement, some swift passing put Bozzy over again a few moments later. Unfortunately Franny blew his chance of immortality by missing the kick that would have given him the record outright.

After what happened at The South Leeds Stadium, a 10 point lead wasn't ever going to be enough this time. Four minutes later the Rams were knocking on the door again, and an inside pass from Kevin Crouthers put Ian Preece over for a try he thoroughly deserved on his return from injury. From here on in, Franny's conversions will be signified only by the use of the letters 'GM', it'll save me a lot of time and effort. GM.

A break up the middle, and a perfectly timed pass from Liam Finn sent Crouthers over, GM, making the score 22-0 and we were still only 20 minutes into the game. The next try was a Kane Epati special. Quick hands gave him a yard of space which he used to the full, swatting off at least two defenders in a barnstorming run down the South Stand side. Try!!! GM.
Some of Dean Lawford's touch finders were out of this world, using the wind well and gaining huge chunks of ground for The Rams. It was only fair then that the next try went to him, going over to the left of the posts. GM.

The last action in a half of scintillating football saw Andy Hobson reacting quickest when the play seemed to have broken down, giving David Bates the chance to crash over to the left of the posts taking a couple of Hawks with him. GM (again), and it was half time Rams 46 Hawks 0. Didn't I tell you? It was some dream.

To be fair to The Hawks, they never stopped trying, especially at the start of the second half, with Mark Cass's words probably ringing in their ears. They were pressing on The Rams line, and looked odds on to score until Bryn Powell's interception sent him off on a 90 yard run to the posts. GM. And right away they were back again, Lawford's break putting Danny Maun over. GM. By this time I was running out of paper faster than The Hawks were running out of ideas. Deano was over again. GM. And shortly after that Francis and Bates both squeezed out passes when they seemed held to put Josh Weeden over for his weekly try. GM.

I was still scribbling down the details of Josh's try when Joe Waters went over for a popular and well deserved try. His distribution was first rate all afternoon, and with Luke Haigh taking a breather this week, and Chappy due back shortly we could have an embarrassment of riches at hooker. Oh, I almost forgot. GM. The Rams tackling remained fierce throughout. Even at 76 - 0, they seemed determined not to give The Hawks any chance of a comeback this time. It might have come from a scrappy passage of play, but The Hawks finally did get on the scoreboard with Murgatroyd scoring the try, and Matt Bramald adding the conversion.

This brought The Hawks fans back to life, and the immortal chant of 'we want 7, we want 7...' brought laughter and applause from The Rams fans on the South Stand. First time I've ever heard one side's supporters being applauded by the other side's supporters. You're a great bunch at Hunslet, and I hope you have a decent season.

Scoring still not over though. Another break down the middle from Liam Finn had him looking round for support as the defence closed in, but a clever pass over the top found Bryn steaming up in support and nobody was going to catch him from that distance. Need you ask, GM. Haven't counted them, but that should make 13 goals. I'd ask Tom to check, but he's only got 10 fingers.

And finally the icing on the cake. After a storming run from Bozzy, the ball was switched quickly inside and Kevin Crouthers dropped a goal. It was only later that we learned it was the second of his career, the first having been ten years ago, almost to the day. A magical end to a dream day? Well, not quite. After my compulsory Guinness in the Royal suite, I went home and watched my copy of the cup game against Leigh. It was almost as good as the day itself.

Two IMPORTANT games coming up though. The cup game against The Eagles, and the first NL1 game against The Dogs. IF we can win those two I'll reckon we've had a decent start to the season. But it's a big IF. This is a funny old game remember.