SKIPTON earned a hard fought win in the mid-table clash with Burley at Sandylands, in conditions that were perfect for running rugby, with the difference between the sides being the boot of Lewis Reynoldson.

Early nerves saw a loose kick give possession to Burley but the ball was recovered by back-row Jordan Wilson and great forward pressure on the visitors' line resulted in a penalty within kickable range, which stand-off Reynoldson converted to open Skipton's tally.

A double movement in the next phase of play gave Burley a penalty into the corner. A second penalty saw them tap and run but they were bundled into touch and scrum-half Jake Emmison cleared from the line-out.

An error at the ruck by Skipton left the ball loose and Burley picked up and were over, but held up. It was a tense time for Skipton, with the goal line drop-out resulting in a Burley penalty. They opted for the scrum and were over, after many phases of play, for a converted try to take the lead at at 7-3.

Skipton came straight back at the visitors from the re-start and an incident off the ball gave the home side a scrum close in.

Quick hands fed skipper Hamish Munro at centre, who crashed over for a try. Reynoldson added the extra points to give Skipton a 10-7 lead at the break.

Skipton Coach Craig Bartlett rang the changes at half-time, bringing Miff Smith on at scrum half and Chris Wilkinson into the back line.

Veteran prop Chris Wright had come into the front row just before the break and Callum Patrick replaced winger Callum Jeffrey, who had sustained a bad wrist injury.

A break by hooker Charlie Brown put Munro clear but Burley gained a penalty for Skipton holding on at the breakdown. Harry McEneaney came into the Skipton pack to replace Jordan Wilson, who had sustained an earlier shoulder injury.

The home side began to take control of the forward battle, resulting in a penalty in front of the posts. Reynoldson slotted the kick to stretch Skipton's lead to 13-7.

A scrum against the head to Skipton resulted in an incident with both sides receiving a yellow card. The home side were awarded a penalty for Burley lifting beyond the horizontal in the tackle, again within kickable range.

Reynoldson made no mistake with the boot and Skipton lead 16-7.

Burley came back very strongly from the re-start, putting Skipton under pressure for the last five minutes of the game but the home side's defence held.

They gave away an unnecessary penalty under the posts on the stroke of full-time, from an incident following a Burley knock-on.

The visitors slotted the kick to gain a losing bonus point , leaving a final score of 16-10 in Skipton's favour.

Skipton have an absent game week this week and return to action next weekend when they travel to Barnsley.