BARLA National Cup Second Round: East Leeds u-14s10 Keighley Albion u-14s 18

ALBION triumphed in their first ever National Cup outing, overcoming an East Leeds side who had beaten them twice previously.

Both games had been close affairs and this full-blooded cup tie was no different as the lead changed hands before Albion pulled away in the latter stages to seal the victory.

James Whitcombe was outstanding and a well-deserved man of the match for Albion.

In the early stages, good driving by Joe Dearnley, Ethan Lawrie and Bobby Darbyshire took Albion into the East Leeds half before Whitcombe broke the line. He was caught five metres out but slipped the ball to centre Oliver Hope, who finished the move to score. Scenting blood, Albion pressed again with further incisive running from Joel Waddington. Whitcombe again went on the charge to break the line and this time touch down himself to make it 8-0.

Darbyshire, Adam Gaunt, Harry Lewis and Jake Brett were all tackling strongly to keep East Leeds at bay. The one scoring chance they had was snuffed out by Harry Normington's last-gasp tackle to stop their centre crossing for what looked a certain score.

After the break, the hosts came out all guns blazing as strong running from their pack saw them cross twice and add a goal to take a 10-8 lead.

Albion dug deep, however, and gained the upper hand through uncompromising defence. Keeping errors to a minimum and seeing their sets out paid dividends as they pegged East Leeds back in their own half for long periods.

Whitcombe was held up over the line but the next attack saw him cross, only for him to lose the ball before he could ground it.

The break came for Keighley as a cross-field kick to the corner from Kobe O’Brien was seized upon by Lawrie to touch down. Whitcombe landed an excellent touchline conversion to give Albion a four-point lead before Josh Tenniswood took an inside ball to cross and seal victory.

They visit Dewsbury Moor on February 22 in the next round. Whitcombe, Darbyshire and Waddington stood out for Albion but all the team deserve the plaudits for a great performance in a fantastic cup tie.