On a cloudy but warm night, both teams were hoping to get to play the fixture which had been postponed from the beginning of August when there was no referee available, writes Martyn Cheney.
There was much too-ing and fro-ing with dates, but eventually, it was settled upon that the game would take place on the 5th September, kicking off at 7pm so we could get to play as much of the game as possible before the light faded.
Both teams came into the game on the back of big wins just five days earlier, when Siddal beat Bentley, and the Buffaloes had travelled across to York to play New Earswick All Blacks.
Just before kick-off, there was a reshuffling of the team to accommodate withdrawal, Kieran Hudson moved to the wing, Dan Baranyi replaced Hudson in the centre, and Cameron McLachlan moved from the Bench into the Second Row.
For the second game in a row, the Buffaloes started brightly, and on the attack and in the opening set of the match, Boom Centre/Winger Kieran Hudson crashed over the line from Dummy Half, with Full Back Aaron Henry adding the Conversion, giving the Buffaloes the lead 6-0.
In the fifth minute of the game, there was an alleged incident in the tackle with some hair pulling and the players came up off the ground swinging. Once the players had calmed down, the referee got his cards out and dispatched Jack Wilson, from the Buffaloes and Alex Oldroyd, from Siddal to the sin-bin for their part in the incident.
The game at this point was all stop and start as both teams fell foul of the referee for various incidents of either foul play or technical offences.
But in the 20th minute, Craig Brown was starting the game for the first time this season came on to a short ball at speed and left the defence in his wake, to crash over for his first try of the season. Connor McGill added the conversion, doubling the Buffaloes’ lead to 12-0.
Three minutes later and the Buffaloes thought they were in again, following a sweeping move that delighted the large crowd that had turned up to watch. However, the Referee rightly saw an infringement and called play back for a scrum.
On 25 minutes, Siddal opened their scoring account for the evening, when winger, Matty Prest, was given the ball on the Buffaloes 40 metre line and raced away beating the despairing defenders for a try near the corner flag. Standoff, Tom Hirst Added the conversion, halving the Buffaloes lead to 12-6.
Five minutes before the break, Substitute Tom Barraclough, on his return from a nasty finger injury, broke free from the defence 30 metres away from the line and powered his way over the try line, with McGill on target again adding extra two points, giving the Buffaloes a 12 point lead, 18-6.
That remained the score until nine minutes into the second half, when Buffaloes Man of the Match, Aidan Baranyi, went on one of his now familiar jinxing runs, beating defender after defender, to score next to the posts. Mcgill was on target again with the conversion, making the score 24-6.
On 55 Minutes Jake Barnett followed Aidan Baranyi through a gaping hole in the defensive line to score his fifth try of the season, McGill again added the extra two points, taking the lead out to an unassailable 30-6.
On the three-quarter mark with the Floodlights coming into their own, Fullback Henry broke free and crossed the line for his third try in three games, out wide; however, the conversion attempt was unsuccessful, with the score now 34-6.
The Buffaloes spent the rest of the game on the attack but were unable to cross the line again. The light was fading fast, and with nine minutes of the game to go, the referee said enough was enough, it was too dark to play on safely, and blew for time.
A second win for the Buffaloes in five days and set them up nicely for the clash on Saturday with the minor premiers, Batley Boys. Kick off at 2:30, at the Warrels, LS13 3NY.
We must thank Bramley Baths for allowing us to have a recovery session there in between games, and good luck to Billy Pickles in his fight on Friday 7th September.
Buffaloes: 1) Henry, Aaron, 4) Hudson, Kieran, 12) Baranyi, Daniel, 4) Mcgill, Connor, 2) Brown, Robert, 6) Wilson, Jack, 7) Wilson, Bradley ©, 18) Brown, Craig, 9) Barnett, Jake,10) Parker, Kenny, 11) Langton, Thomas, 14) Mclachlan, Cameron, 13) Baranyi, Aidan, Subs (All Used); 19) Barraclough, Thomas, 20) Maddison, Ben, 8) Martin, Xavier, 15) Jenkins, Thomas
Tries: Hudson (1), Brown (20), Barraclough (35), Aidan Baranyi (49), Barnett (55), Henry (60)
Goals: Henry 1, McGill 4.
Siddal: 1) Lewis, Oliver, 2) Prest, Matthew, 3) Metcalfe, Aaron, 4) Booth, Dominic, 5) Holroyd, Callum, 6) Hirst, Thomas, 7) Hickey, Finley, 8) Ramsden, Keenan, 9) Thorpe, George, 10) Scott Tinkler, Mason, 11) Turner, Matthew, 12) Howard, Peter, 13) Brennan, Zachary, Subs (All Used); 14) Thompson, Elliott, 15) Oldroyd, Alex, 16) Garnett, Luke
Tries: Prest (25)
Goals: Hirst 1
Men of the Match:
Buffaloes: Aidan Baranyi
Siddal: Matt Turner
Batley Boys await Bramley Buffaloes
After two spectacular victories in five days the Buffaloes are ready to flex their muscles against the Batley Boys team. After a crushing defeat by the best team in the Premier Division at Batley, the Buffaloes re-grouped and are now planning for next season with renewed optimism.
Head Coach Steve Langton (sponsored by Cheney Payroll Services) explained:
“When we have a full side we can match anybody in the division, and with plans already being put into place for next season, we want to go out on a high against Batley.”
Club Captain Brad Wilson (Sponsored by The Three Amigos) said:
“Obviously it’s been a rollercoaster of a season but individually and collectively we’ve learnt a hell of a lot. The boys are fired up to show Batley the real Buffaloes spirit on Saturday.”
Get to the home of great rugby at The Warrels, off Grosmont Terrace, Bramley, LS13 3NY.
Entry is only £2.00 for adults. Kids go free.