ON days like yesterday, it often takes some individual brilliance to swing the outcome of a match one way or the other.

And while any thoughts about rugby league being a summer sport were swept away by the wind and rain on a festering dog day of an afternoon at Craven Park, there was one man who shone in the gloom.

Anyone who has watched Barrow Raiders regularly both this season and last will, of course, not have been surprised to see Jamie Dallimore come to the fore; he is, after all, one of the players who could be considered the heartbeat of the team.

And even though his superb solo try on the half-hour mark provided the jump-start for the Raiders to go on and defeat Doncaster 14-10 in yesterday’s Kingstone Press League One Super Eights clash, there were plenty of facets of his game which stood out.

His goal-kicking, for example, proved crucial in keeping the scoreboard ticking over as it had done the previous week at Whitehaven – particularly with half-back partner and regular kicker Lewis Charnock nursing an ankle injury.

The 28-year-old contributed defensively as well, along with showing how tough he is after riding some big hits and being able to continue despite needing treatment on at least two occasions.

It is, perhaps, that try which stood out the most though, with Dallimore ghosting past several Doncaster defenders from 40 metres out to score and converting for good measure to draw the hosts back on level terms.

The stand-off was far from the only one to step up to the mark though; props Joe Bullock and interchange man Tom Walker made plenty of hard yards with the ball in hand, Ollie Wilkes never took a backwards step in defence and Martin Aspinwall quietly but effectively utilised all of his experience at loose forward.

Indeed, had it not been for a number handling errors in the wet conditions then Barrow may well have added more tries to the two scored by Dallimore and Brett Carter.

Doncaster did not let them have it all their own way though and two well-taken tries of their own, punishing lapses in an otherwise solid defensive display, ensured they always remained a threat.

Yet it was the Raiders players who held their nerve to make it two wins from two in the Super Eights and take big step towards securing a play-off berth.

Despite the home side having the better of the possession and territory early on, it was the visitors who took the lead though from their first meaningful attack when Brad England powered through a gap for a seventh-minute try converted by Jack Miller.

The Raiders kept probing but were undone by knock-ons and some tight defence, including winger Carter being tackled into touch just before he could get the ball down in the corner.

It therefore seemed it would need a moment of magic to get them back in the match and it came 10 minutes before the break when Dallimore took matters into his own hands.

The tit-for-tat nature of the match continued either side of half-time and although Charnock missed the chance to edge Barrow ahead on 43 minutes when he put a penalty wide from 30 metres, Dallimore duly obliged when presented with a similar opportunity five minutes later.

The half-backs then combined to set the move for the Raiders’ second try in motion on 52 minutes, finding Dan Toal who in turn passed to Eze Harper, with the centre stepping and then flicking the ball out wide for support-runner Carter to score in the corner.

Dallimore duly nailed the conversion from the touchline, while Miller was unable to do the same after narrowing the gap with a try following a kick forward on the last tackle which was not dealt with by the Raiders defence.

That left the deficit at four points and it proved enough for Barrow, with Walker narrowly missing out on a third try for them in the final minute after the ball went dead following some nifty football skills from the prop to kick it ahead.

Barrow Raiders: Ryan Fieldhouse; Shane Toal, Declan Hulme, Eze Harper, Brett Carter; Jamie Dallimore, Lewis Charnock; Joe Bullock, Karl Ashall, Ollie Wilkes, Jarrad Stack, Dan Toal, Martin Aspinwall. Interchange: Tom Walker, Nathan Mossop, Andrew Dawson, James Duerden.

Doncaster: Hakim Miloudi; Ryan Jones, Nick Rawsthorne, Jason Dali, Sam Doherty; Reece Dean, Jack Miller; Russ Spiers, Kyle Kesik, Mark Castle, Charles Martin, Brad England, Peter Green. Interchange: Zach Braham, Kieran Cross, Liam Welham, Jamie Thackeray.

Referee: Greg Dolan.