Nottingham Outlaws travelled up the M1 on Saturday to play league leaders Stanley Rangers. A makeshift Outlaws side did their best to stem the tide but they proved no match for the powerful Wakefield outfit and were eventually overwhelmed by 84-0.
The Outlaws went into the game with no fewer than 10 changes to the team that lost at Keighley last time out. There was a new halfback pairing with George Waghorn teaming up with Tom Wigglesworth and Coryn Ward moving to acting half.
There were changes in the pack too with Josh Webb making his debut in the second row .
The Outlaws kicked off playing with the breeze and running down the slope but they couldn’t make the elements pay in their favour, making a dreadful start with some weak tackling around the play the ball allowing the home side to build up a 16-0 lead with only ten minutes on the clock.
Despite the poor start the Outlaws regrouped and had a decent twenty-minute spell in the midway section of the half. The platform was laid by some good tackling by Coryn Ward, Ali Waring and Josh Webb which helped stem the Rangers onslaught with some powerful drives by James Hood at last taking the Outlaws into the home red zone.
Despite some good pressure the Outlaws couldn’t open their tally and as their revival faded the home team grabbed two quick trys to close out the half with the Outlaws trailing 0-24
With only one fully fit substitute left to call on the change options for the coaching staff were limited and a competitive first half was soon replaced with a one-sided second stanza in which the home team used the wind and the slop to great effect and they simply blew the Outlaws away.
A big but mobile Stanley front six broke tackle after tackle and with their backs on fire they ran in no fewer than eleven second half try’s to completely overwhelm an Outlaws side who did their best to stem the tide but were massively outgunned in most aspects of the game.
When the final whistle went the Outlaws were left on the wrong end of an 84-0 scoreline against a superbly drilled home team. Despite the one-sided scoreline a number of players stood out with gutsy performances including captain Coryn Ward who did his best to rally the troops and James Hood who took the man of the match award with some strong carries and some big hits in defence.
The Outlaws now have a week to regather resources before they face another tough encounter up at Keighley next Saturday.