Twickenham awaits victorious Yorkshire trio

Yorkshire will be represented by three teams at Twickenham on RFU Cup finals day.

Ilkley will contest the Intermediate Cup final against East Grinstead after defeating holders Stoke 24-20 at Stacks Field.

Wath Upon Dearne will play Wells in the final of the Senior Vase after a convincing 52-7 semi-final victory over Stourbridge Lions at Moor Road.

And Baildon made it a White Rose hat-trick by edging out Old Wheatleyans of Coventry, 23-10, in the Junior Vase. They now meet Harrow in the final.

Finals day at the home of rugby is Saturday, May 5.

Ilkley needed a last-minute pushover try to defeat Stoke.

Iain McKenzie, who helped the hosts build a 10-0 lead with the aid of a conversion and a penalty by Phil Howell, was the man who emerged with the ball after nearly all 15 Ilkley men attempted to force the ball over the line.

Howell converted his third try from the touchline having earlier added the extras to a try from Stuart Vincent as Ilkley fought back from a 20-10 deficit in the second half.

“We played well but we had our work cut out against their pacey backs,” said rugby operations manager Tom Gillon. “But we had a superb set of forwards to counter that.

“It’s a dream come true for this squad to reach its first national final.”

Wath have been climbing the divisions in recent seasons on the strength of a clutch of returning players, and their progress both on and off the field gained sufficient reward on Saturday with a dismantling of Stourbridge.

The Yorkshire Two promotion-chasers were watched by a crowd of around 1,000 as they booked their first trip to Twickenham.

Steve Mason took the plaudits with a hat-trick of tries, which was fitting given he joined the Rotherham club as an eight-year-old.

Club official Geoff Sherdell said: “With our first team chasing promotion and our second and third teams also chasing honours this season, Saturday was rich reward for all involved at the club.”

Baildon celebrate their centenary next season and can kick their anniversary off in style after sealing their first trip to Twickenham.

They trailed Old Wheatleyans 10-6 at the break with Nicky Lister kicking two penalties to keep them in touch, before Jarrod Huss, Andy Pollard and Alistair Beaumont crossed the line to seal victory.

“It was a fantastic day for the whole club,” said manager Andy Whitley.