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28
Feb
Ilkley vs Harrogate RUFC: Aces must keep it simple in promotion six-pointer
Harrogate Rugby Club must not try to force the spectacular if they are to beat Ilkley today (February 28), says director of rugby Jake Brady.
The Aces will face their local rivals in a promotion six-pointer which could determine who takes the final play-off spot at the end of the season.
Ilkley are one point above Harrogate and sit in the last of the play-off spots. With only five games left to play, it is crunch time.
Speaking to the Stray Ferret this week, Harrogate’s director of rugby, Jake Brady, said:
We’re excited more than anything. We had a strong performance against Heath last time out – even though we lost, we showed for a full half just how good we can be.
The game will favour the team that can employ their game plan the best. They like to keep it loose, throw the ball around and cause chaos. We’re better when we’re more structured in our approach.
At home, The Aces beat their other two promotion rivals, Ilkley and Alnwick, in dramatic fashion – both by just one point. Although they lost to Heath, they dominated the first half, scoring four tries to Heath’s one.
However, Brady’s side has struggled away from home against teams in the top three. They have lost to all three of Heath, Alnwick and Ilkley away.
Brady said:
I don’t think it’s an away/home performance thing to be honest. Driffield away was one of our best performances of the season. It’s about getting consistency and helping the lads understand what works regardless of whether we’re home or away.
We’ve got high expectations of ourselves, because we know how good we can be. But that doesn’t mean that we need to try too much every time we get the ball. It’s easy to want to pick up the ball, take it past three players and touch it down, but that can often lead to us giving the ball away or giving away penalties. We’re best when we hold onto the ball and break down teams over time.
Both teams had a week off last week, which Brady said was a good opportunity for his side to recharge.
This week, preparation has been thorough.
Ilkley have won, drawn and lost the exact same number of games as Harrogate, but have gained one more attacking bonus point than The Aces.
Brady told us how Harrogate plans to exploit them:
Ilkley give away a lot of penalties and are ill-disciplined. We can frustrate them if we hold onto the ball. I think one-on-one tackles will be really important.
A real strength of ours will be our set pieces so we’ve focused on that in training and reducing the number of penalties that we concede.
Harrogate will face Ilkley tomorrow at Ilkley Rugby Club. Kick off is at 2.15pm.
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