BRADFORD Salem launched their centenary season in style, defeating Goole 52-21 in a first-round Yorkshire Cup tie that became an eight-try romp.

Goole scored three tries themselves, but Salem showed their fitness, their strength and their offloading skills, as well as a capacity to score tries from inside their own 22, to score just when they needed it, pulling away against a side that reached last season’s Yorkshire Cup final and finished third in Regional Two North East - the division that Salem are joining for 2024-25.

Next up for 2023-24 treble winners Salem in the county cup are Huddersfield away on October 26 (in the last eight), which will be one of several clubs that the Shay Laners have not played at first-team level (or sometimes any level) before.

Goole, on the evidence of this 80 minutes, are tipping Salem to win the division, but the league campaign hasn’t started yet and if Salem continue to give away as many penalties as they did here they will struggle in tighter matches.

Salem’s head coach Bob Hood was generally satisfied, however, with that one proviso, and said: “We opted for no pre-season friendlies as we have such a small squad, and this was going to be an absolute test, but we are 100 per cent better than we were at the start of last season.

“The training has gone well, but remember we only stopped playing on May 18, although our patterns and structures are embedded and we wanted them to take off where they left off.

“We have worked on skills such as the last part of the game, which is two v one, one v one, three v two, and that absolutely paid off here, and we do that in every session, and we also worked last Thursday on our scrums and our line-outs,”

Hood added: “I wonder what the score would have been if we had only given half the penalties away that we did, and that was because not enough of our players were going into the breakdown but we will address that, and the players are such a good group because they take things on board.

“Apart from the scrums and the line-outs working well, our counter-attacking was superb, although a bit scary at times, and the way that we finished off 70-80 yard tries, with our forwards making breaks and our backs making breaks, was superb, while our first try came from a drive at the back of a line-out so we can score though the middle and out wide.”

Hood revealed: “We scored 130 tries last year and we only needed to win this game, and it was deserved, but we played side to side to side in the first half and we needed some forward penetration, but we can score tries from anywhere.”

As for facing Huddersfield, Hood said: “This is another step on the way, and without challenge there is no improvement..

“We met in July and did some workshop goal-setting, and not one of them was that we would win the league. We will look again at our goals at the end of September and then again halfway through December.

“Our first objective is to get 40 points before Christmas, which will keep us in this league, and to be in the top two by Christmas to get us entry into the Papa John’s, but we owe a great debt of gratitude to our physio Niall Armstrong - not Neil Armstrong - who has had to deal with some seriously injured players, but gets them back out there. He is also a popular member of our (back-room) team.”

The afternoon began with Salem defeating Bradford & Bingley in a veterans’ match 24-12 to win the inaugural Peter Rae Memorial Trophy, which hopefully will be fought for every season, with Wagon Lane the venue at the start of the 2025-26 campaign.

Then it was on to the main event, and Salem went ahead six minutes in with a try by hooker James Brown from the back of a line-out drive.

Captain Christian Baines, who decided in the summer to give it another season, scored the second try on 12 minutes, with influential fly half Andy Robinson landing the conversion.

Back came Goole, however, with a try by captain Eddie Newsome, after a break by Sam Smith, but it was 19-7 at half-time after a beautiful grubber kick by Robinson was seized on by winger Jake Green, with Robinson adding the conversion via the far upright.

Goole then had a try disallowed for a knock on, only for Salem to immediately make them pay with a long-distance try that was finished off by full back Adrea Vasuitoga, Robinson again adding the extras.

The visitors hit back with a try by winger Billy Walker, converted by fly half Tom Holt, but alert Salem replacement Fin Southcott then charged down a clearance kick and got the ball down just before it went dead.

Robinson’s kick made it 33-14, and the hosts stretched their advantage with a try by another replacement, Byron Lisle, a former Salem junior who has returned to the club after a spell of rugby league.

No 8 Will Townend then scored a try for Goole after a high-tackle ruling by referee Kris Garland (Yorkshire Society), Holt adding the 62nd-minute conversion, but it did not stay at 38-21 for long as Vasuitoga crossed again after a break by fellow South Sea islander Pauli Pauli.

Robinson’s kick made it 45-21 and he also converted the final try, scored by Lisle after a sublime offload by prop Conor Wood.

Cleckheaqton, beaten by Goole in last season’s Yorkshire Cup semi-final, won their derby 22-15 at Old Brodleians and will face another derby opponent - this time Heath, who beat visitors Morley 26-21 in a tie that was played on Thursday, August 22.

In the first round of the Yorkshire Shield, Baildon won 41-24 at Northallerton in a preliminary-round tie to book themselves a contest at home to North Ribblesdale, when Keighley will be at Dinnington, Yarnbury will host Roundhegians, Beverley visit West Leeds, and Bramley Phoenix entertain Halifax Vandals.

In the Yorkshire Silver Trophy first round, Bradford & Bingley gave Wheatley Hills a walkover, while in the second round on October 5, Old Otliensians will be at home to Halifax, and Burley visit West Park Leeds.

Aireborough were handed free passage into round two on October 5 by Knaresborough, and will next host Leeds Modernians, while Wortley have given Maltby a walkover into the second round.