Nottingham Outlaws lost their second match in a row when they succumbed to a 26-24 defeat by Brighouse Rangers at Lenton Lane on Saturday. In a scrappy game the Outlaws came back from a 10 point deficit to lead by 18-16 only to gift the visitors the game through a combination of sloppy defence and cheap penalties.
The Outlaws made a poor start to the game despite playing with the breeze, dropping the ball early in the tackle count with alarming regularity so it was no surprise when the visitors opened up a 10-0 lead with less than twenty minutes played.
Finally the Outlaws managed to hold onto the ball and on the back of a period of better ball control the Outlaws managed to get some points on the board, creeping into a 12-10 lead with tries by Coryn Ward and Adam Cunliffe.
However the slender lead soon evaporated when some woeful defending down the middle let Brighouse in for a converted try to gift the visitors a 12-16 lead at the break.
The second half started better for the Outlaws who crept into a 18-16 lead thanks to a second well taken try by Adam Cunliffe but the lead lasted less than a few minutes as the Outlaws lost the ball from the restart and another penalty on the last tackle let the visitors in for a try followed by another as Brighouse opened up a 18-24 lead.
The Outlaws gave themselves a shot of taking something from the game when Luke Wadding went in at the corner but with a difficult angle and a strong wind combined to take the kick wide and the Outlaws were left with a two point deficit as the whistle blew.
There were a few players that were in the mix for man of the match but it was Adam Cunliffe who took the bubbly with two tries and some excellent attacking play.