Batley slump to defeat against Whitehaven

A lacklustre performance, which John Kear described as ‘pathetic’, saw them overturned comfortably by the efficient Cumbrian outfit who simply capitalised on territory gifted to them by the West Yorkshire outfit.

Batley took the lead in the opening five minutes when Lee Paterson raced over after Simon Brown’s interception, however it was as good as it got for the Bulldogs, who failed to score again for over an hour.

Sean Ainscough levelled for Dave Woods’s side with an outstanding turn of pace that saw him leave Batley’s defence for dead, with Cain Southernwood’s conversion putting Whitehaven ahead.

The Cumbrians extended their lead soon after.

A knock-on from Batley in their own half resulted in Chris Taylor scoring under the sticks, before a contentious call from referee Dave Merrick went against the Bulldogs as Craig Calvert dived home in the corner despite a Whitehaven player seeming to fumble the ball in the build-up.

Batley pressed for a way back into the game and whilst a late Charlie Martin try offered a consolation, a second Whitehaven try from Ainscough and a further score from Jordan Hand rounded off a dismal display for the Bulldogs.

Batley Bulldogs: Greenwood, Blackmore, Paterson, Bretherton, A Brown, S Brown, Leatherbarrow, Rowe, Blake, Gledhill, Chandler, Davies, Trout. Substitutes: Smith, Nicholson, Martin, Black.

Whitehaven: Ainscough, Burns, Taylor, Parker, Calvert, Seymour, Southernwood, Jackson, Newton, Hand, Mitchell, McAvoy, Doran. Substitutes: Thorman, Crellin, Tahroui, Robinson.

Referee: D Merrick (RFL).