ILKLEY skipper Charles Ramsay has called on his side to be more clinical after their 21-9 Regional One North derby defeat at Cleckheaton.

The Stacks Field fly half admitted: “We were good in patches but we probably just weren’t clinical enough when we got into good positions.

“They took their chances and that was the difference.

“Last week (in a 31-7 home defeat to leaders Billingham) we kept the energy and the work-rate up and we did that here, where it was a seven-point game until the last three minutes.

“We created opportunities but just didn’t take them, In conditions like this (gloomy weather, greasy ball) you take your points when they are on offer.

“We missed one penalty and one drop goal and they landed all their kicks (until the last one) and landed a drop goal. If you change those six points then we would have been ahead until the last few minutes.”

Ramsay added: “We gave a couple of young lads their debuts in Finn Kelleher and replacement Fred Gazeley, who is a scrum half and had to come on on the wing.

“They did well. It was not easy on a wide pitch when their 10 and 12 have good kicking games, and the young lads had to work really hard in our back three.

“We are missing quite a lot of people due to injury and unavailability due to work but we are being competitive in every game and it is just about taking those opportunities, such as those two chances in the first half.”

This was Cleckheaton’s fourth successive victory but Ilkley had the chance of a losing bonus point until the closing minutes. 

Apart from restricting eighth-placed Ilkley, who beat Cleckheaton twice last season, to three penalties, the Moorenders also scored the game’s only two tries.

The first came after 17 minutes when a wickedly-spinning deflected kick through was knocked on by a visitor, and winger Jack Marshall then combined with man-of-the-match Mikey Hayward for the latter to score.

Cleckheaton’s second try on 80 minutes put a losing bonus point out of Ilkley’s reach, with centre Dominic Brambani progressing at pace before finding Marshall on his shoulder, winger Dom Flanagan then doing well to score in the right-hand corner as Ilkley tried to push him into touch.

With the floodlights on just before kick-off and the weather gloomy with intermittent drizzle, the match, with a greasy ball, was not a classic, with the first chance falling to the hosts in the 10th minute.

Ilkley full back Harry Smith’s clearance kick near their 22 was charged down by his opposite number Bailey Smith, who then fumbled the ball on the floor.

However, a great scrum drive by the home pack won them a penalty, which fly half Dale Breakwell slotted.

Four minutes later, Breakwell managed a collector’s item - a superb drop goal from between the home 10-metre line and halfway - to make it 6-0, Ilkley centre JH Johnson replying a minute later with a penalty of his own.

Then came Hayward’s try, which Breakwell converted, before Cleckheaton survived the greatest threat to their line, Ilkley’s man of the match, scrum half Archie Elgood, making a break in midfield and chipping ahead only to knock on with the line beckoning.

Lock Peter Erskine and prop Rob Sigsworth then attacked with intent down the right only for the move to end with a knock-on.

Harry Smith was then wide with a drop-goal attempt before, in injury time, Bailey Smith was sin-binned by referee Adam Robson (Yorkshire Society) for a high tackle, only for Johnson to miss the penalty.

Trailing 13-3 at half-time, Cleckheaton escaped a potential yellow card for a high tackle early in the half but could then not profit from an Ilkley goal-line drop-out.

Johnson’s inventiveness won Ilkley a penalty in the 67th minute after he was baulked after chipping through, and he slotted the penalty to put Ilkley back within range.

Breakwell’s 50-22 brought Cleckheaton no reward but he then kicked a 57th-minute penalty to make it 16-6, Johnson replying in kind five minutes later.

No 8 Stephen Costello was then twice involved with Johnson, with Oscar Simpson and then Elgood in support but the attacks ended respectively after a clash of heads and a knock-on.

However, Ilkley’s chance of an equalising converted try ended with Cleckheaton’s second try at the death, with the home defence then keeping their ‘clean sheet’.