Sat 17 Jan 2026
Scarborough 54 – 14 Old Crossleyans 1XV
Old Crossleyans faced a challenging return to action on Saturday, travelling to the North East coast to take on league leaders Scarborough at Silver Royd. Following a four-week layoff due to the Christmas break and a weather-related cancellation, the Crocs looked rusty against a sharp Scarborough side coached by former England international Ben Foden. While the 54–14 scoreline was heavy, it was a game where the clinical hosts made the most of every fortunate bounce and "lucky" break.
The afternoon began with the visitors under immediate pressure. A failed clearance and an early yellow card for Tom Rouse for a no-arms tackle gave Scarborough the initiative. Despite gritty defensive work from Finn Sutcliffe, Joe Greenwood, and George Ackroyd, the hosts' scrum-half crossed the line after ten minutes following a fumbled lineout. Scarborough’s backs looked particularly sharp, adding two more converted tries within twenty minutes, including a charged-down clearance.
Crocs fought back with prominent carries from Rouse and Seb Da Silva, while a quick tap by James Johnson gained significant ground. However, a fumbled pass saw Scarborough race the full length of the pitch for a bonus-point try inside 30 minutes. Just before half-time, the Crocs finally found their rhythm. After Harry Drennan secured lineout ball from a Sutcliffe penalty, centre Sam Gill crashed over for a try, converted by Johnson, to make it 26–7 at the break.
The second half saw Crocs dominate early possession, but the luck remained with the home side; a chip-through took a kind bounce for Scarborough to score again. Despite powerful carries from Sbulelo Roji and Seb Da Silva, and Man of the Match Brockson Brown’s excellent work at the breakdown, further handling errors were punished by the hosts.
Scarborough added two late tries to reach 54 points, but the Crocs had the final say. Jacob Pollard charged down the centre, and Jack Hammond found Joal Macfarlane, who set up Brockson Brown to score on the final whistle. It was a tough result against slick opposition, but the Crocs will look to regroup next week at home against Selby with better squad availability.
