'Yet again the first home win has proved elusive, which is especially frustrating given the quality of the previous week's performance.
On the day, there is no doubt that we were outplayed and out-thought by a
Doncaster side that was long on experience, and had clearly done its homework well.
For all the ability and promise of our young players, there is no substitute for that kind of experience.
We were unable to retain our own ball at the tackle
sufficiently well to mount
concerted attacks, which meant that we played with about 30 per cent possession throughout.
Given this shortcoming, I thought we were slow to recognise our strength in the midfield - where Ian Voortman had an outstanding game and continued to take the
visitors on up front, where their back row were dominant at the breakdown.
When we were able to get the ball wider, I thought we showed
considerable creative ability and no little pace, though it was again frustrating that we were unable to finish a series of spectacular breaks with tries.
This was particularly telling in the final quarter when, trailing by six points, we carved them up in the centre, but were unable to hold on to the outlet pass that would have brought seven points and taken us back in front: this was then compounded by a Doncaster score from the resultant scrum which effectively finished the contest.
The players felt this disappointment particularly keenly, as they are anxious to repay the patience of the Mint Bridge fans with an eagerly awaited home win.
However, we shall regroup, look carefully at the video, and continue to work towards
overcoming those frustrating errors that make the
difference between success and failure at this level.
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