Harrogate RUFC were not ruthless enough during derby defeat to Otley RUFC, says Martyn Wood

The Aces chief was left to rue a lack of ruthlessness from his side following a 16-10 National Two North defeat at Rudding Lane.

Trailing 8-0 late in the first half, tries either side of the interval from Chris Jackson and Jacob Percival saw ‘Gate take a 10-8 lead, however the visitors would re-claim the advantage and then hold on to it to secure local bragging rights.

“It was a good old-fashioned Yorkshire derby, the first time Harrogate and Otley had played each other in six years and it was always going to be a tight game,” Wood reflected.

“I think it could have gone either way. I’m not saying that Otley didn’t deserve their victory, but had we come out on top then I don’t think they could have felt too aggrieved.

“We had chances to make sure that we came away with four points rather than one, but we weren’t clinical enough when we got into those positions.

“If you look at the league table, you might think I’d be pleased with how close we ran them, but I can’t be too happy.

“We’ve lost 16-10 for the second week in succession and ended up with one point when we feel we could have taken four, so we need to keep improving so that we can start coming away with results.”

Saturday’s result keeps Harrogate bottom of the table ahead of this weekend’s trip to sixth-placed Chester.

Yet, despite the Aces’ league position, Wood says he is satisfied with the progress that his new-look team are making.

“The boys have been really positive in their approach from the outset, there’s a good atmosphere in the changing room and I do feel we are learning week-on-week,” he added.

"This is a new team and we’re still gelling, but we’re getting better, we just have to keep working hard.

"Saturday will be a very different challenge playing on a 4G track at Chester.

"It’s going to be a tough game because they are a side who are capable of beating anyone in this division on their day.”