OAKBANK School are celebrating an against-the-odds triumph at Bradford Bulls’ Odsal Stadium.

Their year seven/eight team were crowned district champions after overcoming favourites Thornton 26-20 in the final.

Leon Hobson-Sheriff produced a man of the match performance, scoring four tries, and Aaron Wilson also touched down.

Zach Scott chipped in, converting three of the tries.

It was a close match, with neither team gaining more than a six-point lead at any stage.

The most impressive aspect of Oakbank’s triumph was their improvement.

They had lost their first four matches but slowly made progress as they got closer to the play-off stage.

Their performance peaked during the semi-final as they beat Bradford Academy 30-18, a team Oakbank had lost twice to previously.

Thornton went into the final having won all ten matches, with two of those victories against the Oakworth school.

A spokesperson for Oakbank said: “We are so proud of them and the determination they have shown throughout the competition.

“We would also like to thank Matthew Lloyd and Michael Derrick for their commitment to the team.”

Oakbank squad: Leon Hobson-Sheriff, Dillon Birkett, Riley Wilson, Adam Kemp, Zach Scott, Aaron Wilson, Alex Womersly, Kieran Hall, Cameron Harrison, Bobby Horsfall, Ciaran Bartlett, McCauley Smith, Will Hahn, Luke Heggarty, Mikolaj Doszczak, Mohad Tariq, Afsan Uddin, Darnell Alexander Connell.