MATCH REPORT: HURRICANES 34 ROCHDALE HORNETS 42
Hayden Freeman scored one try and had another two disallowed on Sunday. Pic: Andy Shaw.
MIDLANDS HURRICANES 34 ROCHDALE HORNETS 42
DAVE MUSSON, Portway, Sunday 3 July 2022
THE HURRICANES began life after founder Alan Robinson with an agonising defeat that, on another day, would have been a famous victory.
The former Ireland international Robinson departed earlier this week to take a break from the professional game, marking an unknown era for the franchise.
And a devastating opening 15 minutes where Rochdale scored four tries proved costly for the Hurricanes who, despite a thrilling fightback, were never quite able to take the lead.
Hornets edged victory with two tries apiece from Lewis Sheridan and Wigan loanee Ben O’Keefe, plus scores from Robert Worrincy, Gregg McNally, Zac Baker, and Huddersfield loanee Kieran Rush.
Midlands saw Castleford loans Alex Sutcliffe and George Collins both score, along with Tyler Walton, Phil Cowburn, Hayden Freeman, and Kieron Lawton, while there were disallowed scores from Freeman, twice, and Nathan Newbound.
By the end, the Hurricanes could take great heart and pride, but also feel disappointed that their sloppy start really did cost them.
Rochdale broke the deadlock inside three minutes, shifting the ball to Worrincy who scored in the corner.
Four minutes later, they were in again with Sheridan flying onto a short pass to crash over.
Sheridan was then architect, throwing a wonderful dummy to break the line before feeding McNally - with a somewhat forward-looking pass - who coasted in from halfway.
On the first set after the restart, Rochdale struck again – this time it was Baker taking a pass from Sheridan that was flat at best, then sauntering under the posts.
The Hurricanes needed something to claw themselves back into the game and got it midway through the half through Sutcliffe’s powerful score. It came after their first period of meaningful possession and saw them work it through the hands neatly, before finally getting it to Sutcliffe, and the 2020 Challenge Cup winner finished well.
They thought they were in again moments later when Freeman went over in the corner, only for Ben Stead’s delightfully floated pass to have been deemed to have gone forwards.
The Hornets hit next to rub salt in the wound and further keep their hosts at arm’s length; Rangi Chase’s cross-field kick found Daniel Nixon, who quickly put in a grubber that bamboozled the Hurricanes defence and fell kindly for O’Keefe.
Credit to the hosts, who regrouped and scored again. Matty Welham’s clever kick-and-chase bounced desperately out of reach to deny him the score his creativity deserved, but Walton was close on hand to touch down.
And they thought they’d halved the deficit right on the half time hooter when Newbound crashed over, but it was chalked off for reasons that weren’t especially clear.
The Hurricanes looked much tighter and focussed after the break and scored first – Cowburn benefitting from a delightful AJ Boardman offload, which he somehow managed to fling out to a teammate while being spun in a tackle.
Five minutes later they struck again with a fantastic effort; Freeman taking the ball inside his own half, leaving his marker on the ground with a huge hand off, then sprinting 60 metres to finish.
Freeman was then adamant he’d scored again moments later - convinced he’d touched down a clever Stead kick before it crossed the dead ball line - but it was chalked off.
By now, the hosts had the sense of an upset in their nostrils, but the Hornets held firm and scored two crucial tries in quick succession – Sheridan and O’Keefe both bagging their doubles.
But the Hurricanes weren’t done and kept it incredibly tense for Rochdale; Collins skipped through the defence to score with five minutes to play, before Lawton followed suit moments later with another show of nimble footwork and great pace..
However, the Hornets had the final say with Rush stretching to score just before the final whistle.
Hurricanes man of the match: AJ Boardman
MATCHFACTS
HURRICANES: Cowburn, Freeman, M Welham, Sutcliffe, Vasuitoga, Collins, Stead, Clavering, Windley, Ryan, Bowring, Martin, Walton.
Subs (all used): Boardman, Newbound, Cullimore, Lawton
Tries: Sutcliffe (19), Walton (31), Cowburn (48), Freeman (53), Collins (75), Lawton (77)
Goals: Stead 5/6
HORNETS: McNally, Worrincy, Calland, O’Keefe, Nixon, Chase, Sheridan, Rogers, Rush, Bennion, Forster, Baker, Brearley.
Subs (all used): Penkywicz, Taira, Green, Connaughton.
Tries: Worrincy (3), Sheridan (7, 66), McNally (10), Baker (13), O’Keefe (26, 71), Rush (79)
Goals: Sheridan 3/6, McNally 1/1
Penalty count: 10-7
Half-time: 10-28
Referee: Michael Mannifield
Attendance: 417
SCORING SEQUENCE: 0-4, 0-10, 0-16, 0-22, 4-22, 4-28, 10-28, 16-28, 22-28, 22-32, 22-36, 28-36, 34-36, 34-42.