Whitehaven RLFC fall to Dewsbury after second half collapse

Haven manager Anthony Murray praised his side’s first half-performance, calling the defensive efforts akin to “Trojans”, as the away side went into half-time 14-4.

However, following the break, Dewsbury Rams scored 24 unanswered points, putting a tired Haven to the sword and comfortably taking the points.

Murray saw some positives in the defeat (Image: Whitehaven RL)Murray said: “I’m disappointed in the second half performance, in the first half I thought we stuck to the task, did everything that we planned to do.

“I felt we were under quite a lot of pressure on our goal line and we defended it like Trojans, they only broke us down once, and when we got into good field positions, we capitalised when we could.

“We went into the break 14-4 up, and I thought it was well deserved, but then the second half was a completely different story.”

Haven started the game strong, Jack Kellet opened the scoring in the fourth minute of the game, with Kieran Tyrer added another try before the break, alongside two conversions and a penalty.

However, Haven came out a different team in the second half, as Dewsbury ran rampant.

Murray said: “In the second half we just pressed that self-destruct button, the more opportunity we give to the opposition, such as spilling balls, at some point they're going to take advantage of that.

“Ultimately, we defended their attacks for large periods of the second half, but if you keep making these mistakes, you’re not going to get away with it.”

Haven conceded three late tries, two coming in the 80th and 81st minute, ending hopes of a comeback.

Murray’s team now face Swinton Lions at home in their next fixture, where they will look to bounce back.