WHARFEDALE put on a scintillating first half display to push them to victory away at Blaydon on Saturday.

The first try came when Blaydon spilled the ball and Dan Stockdale pounced on it, before feeding Hamilton to burst through and score. Tom Davidson added the conversion.

Blaydon replied minutes later with good handling and strong running, setting up Jonathan Ashman to break through to touch down. Jonathan Dowell brought the scores level with the conversion.

The Dale eight were playing with confidence and the next try came from a five-metre scrum. The pack drove forward and Henry McNab was given the chance to pop over the line to grab an unconverted try. Hamilton’s second try came from his interception on half way; again, his speed took him away from the defence to score. Dale’s bonus point came from a good catch by Bradley Viner who broke away to score. Davidson converted both to put Dale 7 – 26 up.

Hamilton’s third try was another piece of individual skill. The ball was turned over on half way and passed to the winger. This time he sent a kick forward and he beat the defence to touch the ball down. No conversion but a commanding 24-point lead at half-time.

Hamilton added to his haul in the second half before Blaydon rallied in the last six minutes. Credit to the home side as they ran in three tries to earn a much needed bonus point. Their tries were scored by Jack Appleton, Evan Lawther and Sam Laidler with Nathan Horsfall converting the last one to end the game.

This victory gave Dale a second win on the trot and more importantly a second bonus point win. Blaydon struggled at the set piece and this allowed Dale to gain really good field position and meaningful possession, especially in the first half. The line out was a bit of a lottery because of the wind but this did not hamper Dale’s progress. The five points saw Dale climb up to 9th in the table and sets up an interesting clash with Fylde a week on Saturday at the Avenue.

The travelling faithful were very pleased to see the score rattle up and also pleased to see some good handling moves from both forwards and backs.

Wharfedale Head Coach, Jonathan Feeley, commented after the game: “Five points away from home on that surface is a really satisfying return, especially considering the conditions which could have made a lottery of the outcome.

"Their league position doesn’t do them justice-they are a physical, committed team who make life very difficult. But our skills and clinical finishing was the difference.

"Rian Hamilton’s finishing was lethal, his form in the last two matches has been incredible. Brad Viner continues to develop and arguably took the most difficult opportunity.

"But the other boys worked hard to create those chances; the front 8 dominated the set piece and I thought Harry Bullough’s decision making in defence in particular was so accurate.

"We welcome Fylde to the Avenue in two weeks’ time, that will be our biggest test at home to date considering their form, a benchmark game for our rapidly developing squad."

It will be a huge test for Feeley's men, but victory would breathe even more confidence into him and his players ahead of the season's final push.

Can they get the job done?