WARRINGTON eventually eased into the fifth round of the Carnegie Challenge Cup at the Halliwell Jones Stadium after a plucky fight by visitors York Knights.
The 56-10 scoreline somewhat flattered the Wolves who scored four tries late on after the visitors had been reduced to 12 men after prop Danny Ekis was sent off on 64 minutes.
The floodgates looked likely to open when Simon Grix gave Warrington a second-minute lead from Chris Bridge’s pass but the Championship One part-timers caused an early shock when a burst from John Oakes ended with Danny Ratcliffe crossing for the visitors and Richard Knight converted to give York a 6-4 lead over their Super League opponents.
But Ben Harrison then put Vinnie Anderson over to regain the advantage before scoring himself, with Hicks adding the extras on both occasions.
An opportunist try by Paul Hughes midway through the first half cut the gap to 16-10 but Ben Westwood crashed over for Warrington’s fourth after 26 minutes.
Jon Clarke then put Michael Cooper over for his first try of the season to take the Wolves 28-10 up at the break.
Bridge scored on 48 minutes to make it 34-10 and, following the dismissal of Ekis, York were unable stem the tide as Briers, Vinnie Anderson, Louis Anderson and Paul Johnson all crossed.
It was a third win in a row for coach Tony Smith, who singled out prop Garreth Carvell and Ben Westwood, both returning after five-match absences, for special praise.
He said: “They were the two best players on the field. We were professional with the ball and scored some nice tries.
“We were a little patchy in the first half with three errors but lifted it in the second half. The job went well.
Smith also paid tribute to a gutsy perforrmance by their part-time opponents.
He added: “York have two cheeky little brothers in Paul and David March who probably annoy their own mother!”
York boss James Ratcliffe said: “It’s hard enough playing against a Super League team with 13 players never mind 12 but four tries conceded in the last 10 minutes didn’t do us justice.
“It was a valiant effort from our lads. It was a very good performance against world-class stars and full-time opposition. “
Pictures show Ben Westwood going for the line and Paul Johnson looking to off load.
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