BEN Rhydding put on a magnificent display of skill, excellence and mental composure to beat top of the league, Leeds, at the weekend.

The Rhydding boys started on the front foot and kept the ball brilliantly in the opening phase of the contest. They were rewarded with an early goal after superb approach play, which saw Callum Franks firing in from a tight angle to put the underdogs ahead.

Will Musgrave found one of his delectable passes to Mark Portnell whose telepathy is renowned, and he floated the perfect pass to George Gamble who was hurtling ahead to beat the Leeds keeper with a clinical finish to give Rhydding a 2-0 lead.

Rhydding defended valiantly and intelligently but just on the stroke of the half time whistle, Leeds scrambled home a chaotic goal to keep them in it.

But Rhydding sealed victory with a third goal, beautifully crafted by Mark Portnel, who found Will Musgrave who executed brilliantly to make it 3-1.

Leeds pulled one back but it was no more than a consolation goal ahead of the full-time whistle blowing, as Rhydding held on for an outstanding 3-2 victory.

As for the women's team, following two back-to-back wins in the league, Ben Rhydding knew this was going to be a test, with Leeds sitting just above them in the table and local pride to play for.  The first half finished 0-0, despite Rhydding dominating long phases of possession and creating several chances to break the deadlock. Midfielders Beth Cordukes, Sophie Davies and Jess Purvis worked tirelessly to keep Rhydding on the ball and moving forward.
The second half started with Rhydding on top from the start. The deadlock was finally broken in the third quarter by former Leeds player, Kirsty Goodbold as she neatly deflected the ball in to the roof of the net from a penalty corner.  Ben Rhydding had their tails up, and soon scored their second of the game when forwards Rachel Doherty and Poppy Lawson combined with Beth Cordukes, who slotted home underneath the diving goalkeeper.

In the final quarter, Leeds were determined and soon converted a short corner to set the game up for an interesting finish.

Rhydding were cool and professional to the final whistle. Defender Rachelle Le Bourdon made a series of tackles and interceptions which took the sting out any attempted Leeds attack. While at the other end, an outstanding performance by the Leeds ‘keeper maintained the score at 2-1.