SECOND-PLACED Malton & Norton RUFC saw off Pontefract 32-26, but they will be annoyed at a final five minutes in which their visitors snaffled two bonus points.

Malt went ahead in the third minute. The pack rumbled forward and there was only going to be one outcome, second rower Jamie Rounthwaite getting the vital touch.

The home pack were wreaking havoc with the Pontefract eight in both scrum and line out and a penalty for a high tackle was punished by Zwelakhe Sodladla.

After a good passage of play another rolling maul was set up for prop Rob Featherstone to rumble over for the second try.

Some dubious tactics in the Pontefract ranks led to two Malton players, prop Simon Thompson and fly half Nick Daley, having to leave the action for a while because of broken noses.

However, Malt were undeterred and provided the perfect answer from a tap penalty in centre field.

Mark Bradshaw made good ground before passing to centre Vusumzi Dyantjies who advanced until teasing Rounthwaite over for a try.

But in the dying embers of the first half, the visitors executed a move which brought a converted try and an 18-7 half-time scoreline.

With a Pontey player yellow-carded early in the second half, Malt took full advantage. Sodladla tapped to himself and sliced through the defence to score under the posts, adding the conversion.

A forward-looking pass, however, yielded a try for the visitors.

Sodladla then made ground before handing on to Sizwe Zondo who danced through the visitors defence to cross, the former adding the extras.

But then came Malt’s lapse in concentration allowing their visitors to finish on a high when the game should have been put well out of reach.

Malton stay in second position in the league and can move forward from this point.