London Skolars 30 West Wales Raiders 10
Skolars played their third and final pre-season friendly at Ealing Trailfinders as a curtain raiser before London Broncos’ opening Championship game and they enjoyed a victory over fellow League 1 side West Wales Raiders.
With two weeks before the start of the season, coach Jermaine Coleman used the game to look over a number of youngsters that had missed out in the first two games. However, it was an experienced player that caught the eye early in the game, with Neil Thorman returning to the club after a six year absence. The 32 year old set up Skolars’ first two tries. First he pushed a long pass out to to Jerome Yates who broke the defence before cutting inside, offloading to Phil Lyon to open the scoring. Then Thorman moved the ball out to the other wing, this time opening a gap for Omari Caro to stroll over.
They then had to defend, holding up Dean Higgs over the line, but they couldn’t stop prop Morgan Evans from going over later in the set.
Skolars’ third try came from Louis Robinson with Charlie Lawrence adding his second conversion. They kept putting pressure on the opposition, but even allowing for the cold weather they were too many dropped balls for Coleman’s liking.
When Raiders forced a goal-line drop-out. Charlie Lawrence’s kick ricocheted off a welsh defender on the ten metre line and Skolars regained the ball, then winning a penalty, but that failed to find touch and another good chance was missed.
After defending two consecutive sets at the start of the half, Skolars counterattacked, Caro slipping the ball out to the wing for Seb Kolasa to touchdown, but Caro’s conversion bounced back off the posts. Charlie and Alfie Lawrence combined to put Jordan Williams in down the right. Charlie Lawrence extended the lead when he took a return pass from Robinson, Alfie Lawrence kicking the conversion.
After a long stoppage for Raiders’ Mark Asquith to be stretchered off with a dislocated knee-cap, Evans added his second try for the visitors. Skolars went close twice in the last few minutes with Caro being pushed into touch in-goal, then Lamont Bryan was held up over the tryline.
LONDON SKOLARS
1 Elliott Hall
2 Jerome Yates
3 Michael Brown
12 Omari Caro
5 Billy Driver
6 Charlie Lawrence
7 Neil Thorman
8 Louis Robinson
9 Phil Lyon
10 Michael Sykes
18 Lamont Bryan
12 Jordan Williams
19 Michael Greenhalgh
Subs (all used)
24 Alfie Lawrence
14 Dion Chapman
20 Judd Greenhalgh
4 Mike Bishay
22 Sam Nash
17 Thomas Hamer
13 Tommy Chipchase
25 Seb Kolasa
Tries: Lyon (3), Caro (15), Robinson (28), Kolasa (47), Williams (56), C Lawrence (64)
Goals: C Lawrence 2/3, Caro 0/1, A Lawrence 1/2
RAIDERS
2 Jack Uren
21 Sam Baker
17 Aneurin Walker
4 Kurtis Haile
5 Louis Ford
24 Fraser Stroud
7 Mark Asquith
10 Morgan Evans
9 Dan Higgs
11 Harrison Elliott
16 Archie Snook
8 Connor Parker
13 Ashley Bateman
Subs (all used)
19 Harry Boots
26 Desmond Dalton
14 Macauley Harris
3 Daniel Fox
25 Rowland Kaye
21 Simon Ellis
Tries: Evans (20,69)
Goals: Stroud 1/2
Penalty count: 8-11
Half-time: 16-6
Referee: Billy Pearson
Attendance: 287
SCORING SEQUENCE: 6-0, 10-0, 10-6, 16-6, 20-6, 24-6, 30-6, 30-10
