Yarnbury 10 Bradford Salem 32

LAST year's leading try scorer Ellis Gomersal made a surprise return to the injury-ravaged Yarnbury side for this feisty derby clash.

He took over from Jack Brown in a reshaped back division which saw Kieran Lines drafted in on the opposite flank and Will Marshall reverting to his favoured stand-off position.

The inexperienced pack was bolstered by the inclusion of back rower Joe Bennett and lock Ross Leighton, but still relegation-threatened Yarnbury could not come up with a winning combination.

Marshall was lively in the early stages and Leighton made ground with a strong run before Salem took the lead with a penalty by Danny Belcher.

Yarnbury continued to play brightly and were rewarded for their enterprise when athletic prop Lewis Atha sped up in support of an attack like a back row before rounding two defenders to score a fine try.

The one negative for Yarnbury was their habit of conceding penalties for minor offences which enabled the visitors to clear their lines.

Solid defence halted a swift raid from Lines before Salem sped away on a counter attack which resulted in a try for centre Max Trueman.

Belcher landed the difficult conversion and added a further penalty when Yarnbury were penalised for an offence on the ground.

Ellis Gomersall was a threat to the visitors' defence but they managed to keep him at bay. Salem also stunned the home team with a third try on the stroke of half-time from number eight Christian Baines after a succession of penalties close to the line as the lead was extended to 18-5.

Yarnbury's try scorer Atha was sin-binned early in the second half for hands in the ruck before wing forward Calum Manchester evaded the defence to score the bonus-point try for Salem which Belcher converted.

Yarnbury were not dispirited and kept up the pressure on Salem forcing a string of penalties. Eventually they were rewarded when wing forward Bennett scored a try shortly after returning to the action after an impressive stint by youngster George Wood.

The final part of the game saw the home side forcing the play but handling errors spoilt their good work. Salem had the last word when centre Trueman scored his second try of the game with Belcher adding the extras.