Beaten Ilkley fail to hold 11-point lead

The Yorkshire side opened the scoring with a well-struck Philip Howell penalty on eight minutes.

And they extended their lead four minutes later as lively winger John-Henry Johnson showed the covering defence a clean pair of heels to score in the corner.

Howell kicked his second penalty to give his side an 11-point advantage, which an Adrian Hogben try and Rich McKenna’s conversion promptly reduced by seven.

A try from hooker Karl Gleave converted by McKenna five minutes before the interval sent East Grinstead ahead for the first time in the match.

The former went from hero to villain when he was yellow carded for a technical offence shortly after the restart.

Ilkley regained the lead immediately when lock Stephen Burns burrowed over from close-range, Howell converting.

McKenna cut the deficit to a single point before converting Walter Downey’s try. The outstanding McKenna then grabbed a deserved try after Sam Hampson’s fine break as the Sussex side pulled away to register a 34-18 win.

A 26-point haul from Wells fly-half Aaron Cook helped them to an impressive 31-22 victory over spirited Wath.

The Somerset side started in electric fashion and opened up a 23-point lead in as many minutes.

Wells extended their advantage barely three minutes later as hooker Ashley Hill raced home from 20 yards out, with Cook adding two points from the touchline.

Wath made a much sounder start to the second period and scored their first points with a Anthony Barratt penalty.

Cook registered his second try in the left-hand corner as Wath failed to clear their lines effectively.

The Yorkshire side continued to push and clawed a try back through lock Richard Hill, Barratt converting. A remarkable comeback appeared possible when Wath skipper Matthew Burrows crossed for another converted score, only for Cook to slot his fourth penalty.

A try from Wath centre Steve Mason threatened a fightback once again, but Barratt missed the conversion and Wells held on.