REPORT | Dons 74 Swinton Lions 6

The Dons made it six Betfred Championship wins on the spin with a thumping 13-try victory over Swinton Lions at the Eco-Power Stadium.

Richard Horne's side were well on their way to success at half time with a 40-point lead thanks to a Tom Holmes brace and tries from Connor Robinson, Jacob Jones, Edene Gebbie, Pauli Pauli and Reece Lyne.

Lyne and Pauli both completed braces after the break, while Gebbie completed his hat-trick and Titus Gwaze and Muizz Mustapha added further tries.
Horne made seven changes to the side that convincingly saw off Widnes Vikings a week earlier, with Bureta Faraimo, Watson Boas, Titus Gwaze, Gadwin Springer, Jones, Sam Smeaton and Loui McConnell all handed spots in the starting XIII.
The Dons got off to the perfect start when Swinton fumbled a collection within the opening 60 seconds to give the hosts a scrum. Horne's men then first went right and then left, where Holmes spotted the gap to dart through and grounded for an early four-point lead after as many minutes.
The home side had got off to the dream start and were in again 11 minutes later. Robinson picked up in the centre and danced his way through to score underneath the posts. The Dons number seven then converted his own try.
Horne's side were in the driving seat from the off and throughout as they scored again on 23 minutes. They shifted play from right to left, and Jones held off his man to go over. Robinson added the extras. 16-0.
Faraimo was almost in on his return to Dons action a minute later, but Lyne had passed forwards just before the winger grounded in the right-hand corner.
There was no such luck again for Swinton after 29 minutes. Mitieli Vulikijapani smartly delayed his pass out to Gebbie until the last second and left the Dons number eight to power back inside and find the line from the wing. Robinson successfully converted.
The Dons were already in total control, but they finished the first half with a try-scoring flurry to drain the visitors of any hope of a second half comeback.
Pauli first bounced onto a ball from a short distance out and left the Swinton defence with no chance of stopping him from grounding on 35 minutes. Robinson again successfully converted. 28-0.
Then Lyne was in three minutes later after Holmes handed him the ball just short of the line on the right for the easiest of tries. Robinson again added the extras for a 34-point lead.
And Holmes made it a personal brace for himself just before the hooter after being given possession by Robinson on the breakaway and racing up the pitch to score. Robinson again notched the ball between the sticks. 40-0 at half time.
The Dons came out for the second half looking to kick on again, and they furthered their advantage seven minutes after the restart. Faraimo provided a superb no-look pass to keep the ball in play on the right wing, and Lyne collected to complete his brace with a try as easy as his first. Robinson again added the extras.
Swinton responded with a consolation try after 53 minutes as Jordan Brown pounced on a loose ball and grounded on the left. Gavin Rodden added the extras to make it 46-6.
Any slither of positivity was quickly dashed for the away side as Ellis Anderson was sin-binned just two minutes later. The Lions were down to 12 for the next ten minutes.
Another Dons brace was completed one minute before the hour mark as Boas found Pauli, who quickly raced away to score to the left of centre. Robinson again converted. 52-6.
Gebbie was in for his second of the day on 62 minutes. The winger linked up with Robinson and dashed away on the left to finish off the move near the corner. The Dons were now 50 points in front.
Horne's men scored again five minutes later as Mustapha and Gwaze combined to see the latter step over the line just to the right of the uprights. Robinson notched the ball perfectly again. 62-6.
There was still time for more Dons tries, and the home side found the line again after 79 minutes. Vulikijapani and Gebbie played a one-two on the wing, and the Dons number 18 ran away to score right in the corner to complete his hat-trick and score his tenth try of the 2026 season. 68-6.
The job was more than done, but there was still time for one more try just before the full time hooter. Robinson had Mustapha to his left and Boas to his right after breaking the Swinton line, and he went with Mustapha to leave the prop to cross underneath the woodwork. Boas kicked the conversion to complete the scoring on his 100th Dons appearance with a successful kick and a crowning two points.
The Dons had completed a thoroughly professional performance to make it five league wins on the trot with a 74-6 scoreline.
Dons: Holmes, Faraimo, Lyne, Vilikijapani, Gebbie, Boas, Robinson, Gwaze, Burns, Springer, Jones, Smeaton, McConnell. Interchanges: Baldwinson, Pauli, Mustapha, Misky.