Skipton 3 Old Modernians 34

Skipton fielded a stronger side on Saturday than in recent weeks and the early signs were promising.

The forwards more than held their own against their Yorkshire Division Three promotion-chasing opponents.

Hooker Charlie Brown took a couple of scrums against the head, and there were some strong runs from Luke Stockton in the centre and Lee Shaw, returning from injury, on the wing.

After 30 minutes there was no score and Old Mods had hardly ventured into Skip- ton’s half.

The home crowd were encouraged and began to think there was a glimmer of light for the Reds.

Two soft tries in the last ten minutes of the first half gave the visitors the upper hand and after the break it was the same story as in recent weeks.

The visitors’ old heads began to wear the young Skipton side down adding a further 20 points with only a consolation penalty goal for the home side.

This was by no means a disappointing performance by Skipton, who played some good rugby, and there is plenty to build on for the future, but they must come away with a couple of wins soon to pull clear of the relegation zone.