The Royal Navy Rugby League team negotiated a muddy tie in Yorkshire to reach the second round of the Powergen Challenge Cup.

The sailors and Royal Marines travelled to West Yorkshire where they and opponents the Normanton Knights both sides found conditions tricky.

The home team were given a jolt when, after a blank opening 20 minutes, LMEM Taff George broke the deadlock with a try on his first team debut. MEM Scott Partis converted from distance.

Five minutes later Scott, from HMS Invincible, intercepted a pass on his own 20-metre line and ran home close enough to the posts for a relatively easy conversion, giving the Navy a 12-0 lead.

The Yorkshire side woke up with two tries and a conversion of their own to give the Navy a two-point lead – and food for thought – at the break.

Straight from the kick-off, Normanton scored an unconverted try, then piled on the pressure for the next ten minutes as they tried to crush the sailors.

But when Mne Mark Ives took a pass from Sgt Jamie Goss to score, the RN edged back in front. The Knights were twice within a whisker of scoring further tries, but Man of the Match Scott Partis set the seal on the Dark Blues’ victory with a penalty goal which completed the scoring at 20-14 to the RN.

Scott also played a major part in the Great Britain Combined Services victory over their counterparts from Australia.

OM Steve Lockton, LWEA Tom McKenna and Mne ‘Heppy’ Hepworth completed the Navy line-up in the CS ranks.

The Aussies scored the sole try of a low-scoring, close affair at Hull Kingston Rovers’ ground, watched by the city’s Lord Mayor Cllr Ken Branson.

With the scores tied at 6-6, MEM Partis received the ball on the 20-metre line to slot home a drop goal which clinched the game in the British Forces’ favour.

His winning score was particularly celebrated by Cllr Branson who, like Scott, was a Navy stoker and Hull born and bred.

The talent in the fledgling RL side is beginning to become noticed beyond RN circles.

Cpl Richie Guy and LWEA Tom McKenna were picked for the Combined Services side in its traditional clash with the U23 BARLA squad, the best youngsters in amateur Rugby League.

The match at HMS Caledonia saw the civvies run out 42-16 winners, but MEM Partis at least walked off with the Man of the Match title – and scored the try of the contest.