Crosfields 34 Dewsbury Moor 16.

CROSFIELDS produced a stunning second-half performance to maintain their position at the top of the table with a win over Dewsbury Moor at Hook Lane on Saturday.

After a disastrous first half in which they were faced with a three-score deficit, Soap stormed back to run in six unanswered tries after the break, including two for influential half-back Billy Sheen.

Ian Boden, Matt Mahoney, Matt Barber and Jack Reid also crossed as the hosts maintained their five-point lead at the top of the National Conference League Division Three.

The visitors took the game to Crosfields in sweltering conditions at Hook Lane as the hosts struggled to regain their rhythm after a two-week break.

Dewsbury piled on the pressure, playing some adventurous rugby that was rewarded with two tries and two penalty goals.

Soap had endured a torturous first half and did not trouble the scorers as they turned around for the second half 14-0 down, leaving head coach Tony Benson with plenty of work to do.

However, his players responded in fine style and Sheen got them on the board shortly after the restart, diving over after good build-up play involving Sam Woodall, Joe Clarke and Ash Cornelia for a try converted by Reid.

Boden had come on as a replacement for the injured Chris Hull and his impact was immediate as he soared high to catch and touch down a chip by Reid, who added the conversion.

The visitors added a penalty goal to edge further ahead, but all the momentum was with Soap and they duly levelled the scores when a magnificent cut-out pass from Sheen found Mahoney in acres of space to crash over.

Sheen had a try ruled out for a forward pass after a flowing move, but Soap did not rue the decision for too long as the ball was spilled from the resulting scrum and gobbled up by Sheen, who duly crossed to put Crosfields ahead for the first time.

Barber then bulldozed through the defence to stretch the lead further, with Reid’s conversion giving them much-needed breathing space.

Reid then got a try of his own with the last play of the game as he capped off a wonderful move to seal the victory.

After facing local rivals Rylands Sharks last night, Wednesday, Soap face another extended break before their next fixture against Drighlington on July 2.

Crosfields: Ash Cornelia; Nathan Taylor, Chris Hull, Chris Burgess, Keiron Thomas; Jack Reid, Billy Sheen; Phil Brazendale, Hayden James, John Pickersgill, Matt Mahoney, Joe Moore, Joe Clarke. Subs: Lewis Bani, Ian Boden, Sam Woodall, Matt Barber.