I felt it was a workmanlike display, with signs of understanding beginning to emerge. Vaivai is going to be a real favourite this season, and I felt that both Thompsons did well. In the threequarters Crooks and Dawson ran hard, and Owens' positional play was excellent at full back. In the interests of fairness, I thought Reynolds had a good game and was much more involved - it probably helps if your forwards are on the front foot.
The refereeing was, at times bizarre. The penalty count was heavily in Batley's favour in the first half, and then even more heavily in our favour in the second half. was something said at half-time? We are still getting penalised for not clearing the ptb, even when players are frantically clearing (or being dragged from) the area. Conversely, Batley were allowed to maul us to death at the ptb in the first half, but not in the second.
A word about Jamie Acton, who did admirably to keep out of the fracas, that followed him being tipped over and dropped on his head. Although it was a shame that the ref sorted it by deciding on a scrum, with Batley feed. Now, had Jamie been the protagaonist...................
