Ilkley coach looks for response (From Ilkley Gazette)

Ilkley coach looks for response after bad day at the office

11:17am Thursday 10th January 2013 in Sport By Alan Birkinshaw, Weeklies Sports Editor

Ilkley coach Rhys Morgan is hoping that last Saturday’s 31-3 home defeat by promotion rivals Driffield was just a “bad day at the office.”

Now he is hoping that his men will bounce back with a Yorkshire One win at Heath on Saturday.

But that may be easier said than done against opponents who defeated Driffield before Christmas.

“Last Saturday’s scoreline wasn’t a true reflection of the game” said Morgan.

“We created lots of attacking opportunities but just couldn’t take them. We dropped passes at key moments and even our rolling maul, usually so effective didn’t work this time.

“In contrast, Driffield tackled well and took the chances that came their way.”

One of the plusses to come from the defeat was the successful return of skipper Stuart Vincent after injury as a replacement.

He could now start at Heath where Ilkley could be forced to field a new centre pairing as Craig Barker is struggling with an injury while JH Johnson is unavailable.

“How we deal with situations like this will determine how successful we will be this season,” said Morgan.