IT WAS a bit like the walking wounded by the end.

Baildon skipper Jake Duxbury was defying a rib injury, scrum half Tom Parnell – shoved out to the right wing – had a possible fractured fibula, and No 8 Jack Chapman and winger Will Eastell both had ankle injuries.

However, the third-placed hosts had strained every sinew and deservedly defeated Counties Two Yorkshire leaders Wensleydale 14-10 to keep the Jenny Laners in the promotion hunt.

On an afternoon when the weather couldn’t quite make its mind up, it was difficult to pick out anyone in a Baildon shirt who hadn’t played well.

Centre Andy Robinson, who took over goal-kicking duties after Duxbury’s injury, was their official man of the match but equally praiseworthy, among others, was the display of lock James Fox.

Tackling-machine Fox, now 34, said: “It was a fantastic performance – everyone chipped in and we did our job as a unit.

“At the start of the game, the plan was to give it everything that we had in the first 10 minutes, and it worked.

“You could tell in the warm-up that we were up for it from one to 18 and we did the basics well.

“The slippery conditions made it difficult but we decided to keep the ball in the pack, where I think we had the edge.

“It was a bit messy in the first half but we kept going in the second half and had them going backwards towards the end.

“They (Wensleydale) were chirping away the whole time, so we did well to keep our heads.

“There were some heavy tackles going in, some big hits, but we still have the ambition to go up, even though we might not be ready for it.

“If we play the way we did today we will take care of Leeds Corinthians at home next week.”

Fox returned to Baildon halfway through last season from Keighley and is clearly enjoying himself, saying: “I have known some of the lads since I was four or five, playing tag rugby.

“They are a great set of lads and fitness will be the issue in terms of promotion, rather than size.”

Baildon went into the match 11 points behind second-placed Harrogate Pythons but with a game in hand, and Wensleydale kicked off down the Jenny Lane slope.

Grubber kicks by full-back Duxbury proved to be a good tactic and left winger Ben Shaw almost got on the end of one in front of the clubhouse in the 10th minute, only to knock on.

Referee Andy Baker controlled the match well but had to talk to skippers Duxbury and Ewan Metcalfe six minutes later to calm matters down.

Duxbury put the home side in front with a penalty in the 18th minute, and there was a sniff of a try three minutes later when Eastell intercepted on the right wing, only for the ball to be knocked on after he laid it back.

Wensleydale fly-half Jack Reynard levelled matters in the 26th minute with a penalty, and the visitors took the lead three minutes, after that with a pushover try for hooker Tom Larder that Reynard converted.

However, they ended the half a man light after No.8 Rob Stanwix was sin-binned for killing the ball.

Trailing 10-3 at the interval, Baildon got a good head of steam up early in the second half and were rewarded in the 47th minute when Duxbury went over in the left-centre channel from a Robinson pass.

Duxbury’s shots at goal were assisted by a team-mate holding the ball, such was the gusty wind, but it went wrong two minutes later when his attempted penalty never got above six feet off the ground.

He was the victim of a late tackle in the 53rd minute by replacement Jake Ashford, who was yellow carded, but Duxbury shrugged off his rib injury to stay on, although he let Robinson kick at goal.

The fly-half’s penalty bounced over off the crossbar to make it 11-10 and he anded another from a more central position 16 minutes later, with the kicks bookending another Eastell interception.

Lock Metcalfe became the third Wensleydale player to be shown yellow, tackling a player without the ball in the 71st minute, but Robinson missed the subsequent penalty.

Chapman had joined Parnell among the walking wounded by now, but the latter still had enough pluck to chase down Duxbury’s grubber kick to the right-hand corner, just being beaten to the ball by a Wensleydale defender.

Baildon finished the match on top when Robinson, who earlier had pulled off a textbook leg tackle, scooted down the left-hand touchline, with Baker blowing the final whistle seconds later.

Baildon now only trail Pythons, who still have Wensleydale to play, by nine points, but Baildon have a game in hand over Pythons – at Bramley Phoenix on March 25.