Doncaster’s winning streak in the Kingstone Press Championship came to an end as Whitehaven secured victory at the Recreation Ground.
Cain Southernwood almost gave the home side the perfect start, he pounced on a loose ball, kicking and chasing it, but the Dons defence scrambled back and forced the ball over the dead ball line.
Inside 10 minutes Whitehaven did take the lead, the Dons failed to deal with Southernwood’s high bomb and Jessie Joe Parker picked up the loose ball to score under the posts. Southernwood added the conversion.
The home side continued to dominate the opening period and Chris Taylor sent Jordan Burns down the wing, but the Dons are saved by a last ditch tackle by Stewart Sanderson. The Dons were then penalised for offside and the home side took advantage when Lee Mitchell went over after great handling by the home side. Southernwood made no mistake, adding the extra’s to give Whitehaven a 12-0 lead.
Doncaster pressed following the try, when Mitchell stepped into touch from the restart. From a well-worked scrum, Paul Cooke dummied and almost broke through, but he was held up just short of the line.
However it was the home side who added to their lead in the 27th minute, Shaun Ainscough broke superbly and was tackled just metres out. He played the ball quickly and Whitehaven spread the ball out and Jordan Burns scored in the right corner. Southernwood kept up his 100% record in the match to give the Cumbrian side an 18 point advantage.
The Dons pushed to get back into the game, having four sets of six on the Whitehaven line, however were unable to make a breakthrough as the home side’s defence held strong.
Three minutes from the break, Lee McAvoy broke through superbly and scored underneath the sticks in a super solo effort. Southernwood added the conversion, to give Whitehaven a 24-0 lead.
From the restart the Dons were awarded a penalty, James Robinson knocked the ball forward with his foot and Southernwood touched it in an offside position, just 10 metres out. Doncaster took full advantage as Lee Waterman produced an amazing offload to Tom Hodson, who dived over superman-esque, narrowly avoiding touch to score in the right corner on his second debut. Sanderson superbly converted as the hooter sounded for half time.
Half Time: Whitehaven 24-6 Doncaster
After the break, Doncaster were awarded a penalty after Mike Emmett had the ball stolen from him in a tackle. The Dons took advantage of the field possession, with some quick thinking by Kyle Kesik at the play the ball, he passed down the blind side to Hodson on the overlap to go over in the right corner for his second try. Sanderson was unable to convert the try, with Doncaster trailing 24-10.
From the restart Sanderson knocked on, giving Whitehaven a scrum 10 metres out. The home side took full advantage, extending their lead, when Taylor crashed over in the corner after some good handling play. Southernwood was unable to add the conversion.
A bizarre sequence of play followed, beginning with Whitehaven choosing to ignore their coach, telling them to take two points from a penalty. They grubber kicked on the third tackle, but a knock on over the try line resulted in a Dons 20m tap. Jordan Burns who felt he had got downward pressure on the ball was then sent to the sin bin for dissent.
The Dons took full advantage of the extra man, when Lee Waterman powered over in the left corner. Sanderson converted to reduce the deficit to 28-16.
Whitehaven went close to scoring ten minutes from full time, Southernwood's high kick was met by Parker, but he knocked on over the line
In the next set Waterman scored for the Dons, however the referee disallowed the try, judging that Cooke’s pass to him was forward.
Whitehaven sealed the win, when Southernwood slotted a drop goal from 20 metres out, which looked to end Doncaster’s hopes of even picking up a bonus point.
However their was late drama, when Hodson broke and passed inside to the supporting Matty Wildie. He superbly chipped across the field for Sanderson to chase and he slid over to secure the Dons a bonus point. Sanderson failed with the conversion, with the home side coming away with a 29-20 win.
The Dons drop to third in the league following the defeat, with Whitehaven recording a third home success against Doncaster, in their last three meetings at the Recreation Ground.
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