Royston U-15 26pts Ely 26pts IN A highly entertaining match that ebbed and flowed in a swirling wind, Royston kept up their unbeaten run in unusual circumstances. The heavyweight Ely pack was again in evidence. They camped on the Royston line for the firs

Royston U-15 26pts Ely 26pts IN A highly entertaining match that ebbed and flowed in a swirling wind, Royston kept up their unbeaten run in unusual circumstances. The heavyweight Ely pack was again in evidence. They camped on the Royston line for the first 20 minutes and Royston dug in to keep the score down to one try during the early exchanges. As the game opened out Royston were able to bring their pacey backs into the game. From a ruck James Day fed the ball wide for Matt Andrews to touch down in the corner. Andrews converted superbly from a difficult angle to give Royston a 7-5 lead at half-time. Royston started to take the game to the opposition. Stuart Goldfinch broke from his own line to be thwarted by a desperate tap tackle while in full flow. Dan Ritsema made repeated incursions and Ben Ritsema placed dangerous kicks behind the Ely line. Then the Stuart Goldfinch Show started. First he bounced his way, pinball-style, over the line to score. Then he received the ball inside his own 22, beat two tackles and outpaced the Ely defence to score an astonishing individual try. To cap a mesmerising man-of-the-match performance, Goldfinch completed his hat-trick with a try from the halfway line. Two conversions out of three left Royston 26-5 ahead with 20 minutes to go. The Royston pack, always under pressure, held out valiantly against the odds. James Watson tackled tirelessly and hooker Dwayne Wilkins was often first to the breakdown. But, eventually, something had to give. With 15 minutes to go, the Ely forwards finally broke through to score without difficulty. Filled with new hope they piled on the pressure to score again - and again. Three converted tries levelled the scores and left Royston with the bitter taste of a draw.