ILKLEY have made a good start to the season, according to the club's head of rugby Rhys Morgan.

The Dalesmen are fifth in the North Premier table, winning three of their first five league games and notching up 16 points.

Ilkley went into a break from action this weekend with a 29-5 victory over Vale of Lune last Saturday.

They return to the field with a trip to eighth-placed Rossendale on Saturday, October 13.

Morgan said: "If a couple of decisions had gone our way, we could have had five wins from five.

"I was a bit disappointed that we didn't win at Sandal and Billingham too. We could have had a couple of decisions that could have gone our way.

"We have beaten teams that are not doing perhaps as well as they thought they would. We now have a bit more confidence to push on. These types of games are really, really important for us.

"With the number of injuries we have had, I can't complain.

"We will take it one game at a time, we will assess things as we go along. It was important to beat a team like Vale, as we did on Saturday, as they are dangerous games for us."

Speaking on his side's free weekend, Morgan added it would give his side a chance to lick its wounds and have much-needed recovery time following a busy start to the campaign.

He said: "It feels really weird for us to have a break this early.

"We have had a few injuries and a tough pre-season. That means it is really welcome for us to have a free week to lick our wounds and get back on track.

"We don't have the strength in depth that we had last season, so that means we have to juggle things. This free weekend gives us an extra bit of time.

"It will be good for players like Pat Power to have a break and come back firing on all cylinders."