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Halifax 28-20 Wakefield Trinity

Wakefield's top flight status remains on a knife edge after they threw away a 14-point lead in a thriller at The Shay.

Having already secured their place in next season's Super League, new Halifax boss Tony Anderson gave several players the chance to play for their contracts.

Halifax

Tries: Davidson, Penkywicz, Beckett, Woods.

Goals: Finn 5.

Drop Goals: Bloem, Finn.

Winger Lee Greenwood, playmaker Liam Finn, hooker Sean Penkywicz, second-rower Andrew Brocklehurst and prop Chris Birchall all made their first starts as cover for the injury stricken Brett Goldspink, Jim Gannon, Gavin Clinch and Johnny Lawless.

But Wakefield coach Shane McNally did not have the luxury of testing out rookies.

Wakefield

Tries: Frew 2, March.

Goals: Knott 4.

Although stand-off Martin Moana was ruled out with a groin strain, McNally welcomed goalkicking loose forward Ian Knott back to the side, with veteran prop Paul Broadbent returning to take his place on the bench.

They could not have wished for a better start, taking a 6-0 lead within three minutes of the kick-off.

Brad Davis' lofted high kick off the sixth tackle was chased on by Andrew Frew and the flying three-quarter scooped the ball away from Lee Greenwood to go over for Wakefield's first try.

Knott added the two points and, with their urgency dominating the match, the Wildcats soon extended their lead.

Poor defending enabled Paul Jackson to play the ball quickly out of the tackle and send hooker David March charging over.

Then, in an almost exact repeat of his opening touchdown, Frew went over for Wakefield's third try in the 23rd minute.

Having been frustrated by handling errors, Halifax closed the gap two minutes later when Andrew Dunemann's grubber kick bobbled out of Knott's grasp for substitute Paul Davidson to score.

Liam Finn
Finn's boot compounded the misery
Knott corrected his earlier kicking problems to slot a penalty for Wakefield.

But Davidson's quick thinking caught the visitors out as Sean Penkywicz crashed over late in the first half, leaving Finn his second easy conversion to reduce the deficit to 16-12 at half-time.

The teenage kicker slotted a penalty shortly after the restart, only for Knott to counter with two solid strikes.

But the Wildcats' first-half endeavour drifted away from them in the final 15 minutes as Halifax stepped up their momentum.

Robby Beckett and David Woods both touched down, with Finn adding another five points and Jamie Bloem slotting a drop goal to finish off Wakefield.

Halifax: Flowers; Beckett, Woods, Halliwell, Greenwood; Dunemann, Finn; Hobson, Penkywicz, Birchall, Bloem, Brocklehurst, McMenemy.
Replacements: Thackray, Clayton, Davidson, Netherton.

Wakefield: Holland; Sovatabua, Tassell, Bird, Frew; Vowles, Davis; Jackson, March, Feather, Slattery, Ellis, Knott.
Replacements: Broadbent, Keating, Field, Law.

Referee: Karl Kirkpatrick (Warrington).


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