'Phenomenal' Kristan Dobson scores four tries to help Harrogate RUFC to title-clinching victory

The Aces headed to Driffield on Saturday knowing that a win would guarantee that they finished top of the pile, thus sealing an immediate return to National Two North following their relegation at the end of last term.

And although they eventually triumphed by a fairly comfortable 45-27 margin, the men from Rudding Lane had to do it the hard way.

Trailing 7-0 after just three minutes and by six points at the interval, Harrogate came from behind on four separate occasions to secure the League title.

And Dobson played a huge part, crossing the whitewash once before the break and three times after it as he again showed his class at outside centre.

A January arrival from Yorkshire rivals Ilkley, he has slotted seamlessly into ‘Gate’s back-line, and although keen to praise the efforts of his whole squad, head coach Dan Scarbrough said he was delighted by Dobson’s contribution in what was a crunch clash.

“Kristan is an old pupil from Bradford Grammar School where I work and I was pleased to be able to bring him here as he is an outstanding talent,” Scarbrough told the Harrogate Advertiser.

"He has been phenomenal for us and to score four tries in such a big game is a superb effort, I was really pleased with his performance.

"Kristan and Kodie Brook have done very well since joining us, but so have a lot of the boys who we have recruited, as well as some of the young lads coming through like Will Pritchard and Gabe Horberry.

"It has been a real squad effort to get out of this league. We have used 41 players in the 1st XV this season and every single one of them have played an important part.”

Harrogate headed into Saturday's game two points ahead of second-placed Heath and knowing that a victory of any kind would guarantee that they remained in pole position and thus gained promotion.

But they were denied home advantage for such an important fixture due to their own pitch not being playable, with the match first moved to Knaresborough RUFC, before heavy rainfall meant that it had to take place at Driffield's Kelleythorpe base.

And the Aces didn’t exactly get off to the best of starts, falling behind with just three minutes on the clock when Adam Brankley touched down for the Woldsmen. James Watts’ conversion then made it 7-0 to the hosts.

The ‘Gate response was fairly swift, back-row forward Will Hill going over a score that was converted by fly-half Tom Steene for 7-7.

A penalty goal from the boot of Watts saw Driffield edge back in front, though Harrogate took the lead for the first time just past the midway point of the opening period as Dobson went over for his first try, with Steene adding the extra two.

Any thoughts that ‘Gate were going to go on from there and wrap up the league title in straightforward fashion quickly evaporated, with Brankley’s second score of the afternoon quickly followed by a touchdown from Jack Sowersby, which saw the Woldsmen take a 20-14 advantage into the interval.

The men from Rudding Lane knew that they needed to make a fast start to the second half in order to stop the home side from pulling clear, and they duly did so.

Full-back Kodie Brook caught replacement Oli Toomey’s cross-kick and crossed the whitewash barely 60 seconds after the resumption, though on this occasion Steene was unable to convert, leaving his side trailing by a single point.

But that miss was quickly forgotten as, just a minute later, Dobson ran in from close to halfway, with Steene doing the rest to make it 26-20.

Driffield were not done there, however, and a Robert Rix try that was converted by Watts saw them sneak back into the ascendancy on 51 minutes.

Their title hopes in the balance, Harrogate rallied and finished the game with a flourish, pulling well clear courtesy of three unanswered scores.

Hill was next to cross taking his tally for the season to 10, followed by another brace of touchdowns for the irrepressible Dobson, with a couple more conversions from Steene helping move the score-line along to 45-27.

"Credit to the players for earning promotion this season, but a lot of work has gone in behind the scenes as well, and the likes of Aled Jones and Richard Wade also deserve a mention for their efforts,” Scarbrough added.

"It’s a great achievement to go back up at the first attempt, but there is a massive challenge awaiting us next season now and plenty of work to be done to prepare us for National Two.”