Ilkley rugby coach Rhys Morgan has put Saturday’s dogged 17-13 York- shire One win at Bridlington down to sheer grit and determination as they overcame the freezing conditions.

The East Coast was given a reprieve from the snow, which allowed the game to go on, but gale-force winds and sub-zero temper- atures weren’t the only thing Ilkley were forced to contend with.

“We lost Steve Nolson with the weather, he couldn’t get there,” Morgan said, “We almost lost big Steve Burns too, but managed to get him at the last minute and the coach managed to get there in one piece, thankfully.”

It was a game Morgan was desperate to play, as last season Ilkley’s extended national cup run meant they couldn’t fulfil the fixture.

“We didn’t get to Brid last year unfortunately, and we were well aware of the financial implications of a club forgoing a home game, so we were keen to get across and get the game on. It was important.

“It got a bit tasty in places, a bit of an arm wrestle, but I was happy that we stood up to that. In the past Ilkley have been renowned for shirking those sorts of games, but towards the end of this season we’ve really stood our corner.”

The game represented more than just another fixture to Ilkley, who sit nine points from the promotion places, having played more games. Its results against those in the bottom half, like Bridlington, that have cost them promotion, says Morgan.

“If you assess some of the games we perhaps should have won and didn’t, we’re going to have to look at those after the season and think those are the reasons we didn’t end up in second place. Having said that, a top four finish is what we really wanted, and I’m in no mind set to relinquish third spot.”

Above them, Huddersfield YMCA were snowed off, and Driffield had a weekend off, and despite the deficit, the Ilkley coach refuses to give up hope of a miracle.

“A lot of people will look at it and not give us a cat in hell’s chance, but if one of them make a mistake, even get a points deduction by putting an extra man on or whatever, then we need to be there snapping at their heels. We don’t know what players they might be missing either.”

Ilkley’s next game is a home encounter against Dinnington at Stacks Field on April 6.