Playing, at times, some quite sublime football, Hornets had frustrated and humbled Salford - but when Robinson launched his desperate last tackle pass fully 15 feet forward in the closing minutes, the officials chose not to see and the game was effectively gone.

Salford got off to a quickfire start; two early tries from Sibbit and Dickens - both on the back of penalties from referee J. King - rushed them into a 10-nil lead before Hornets had a chance to get to grips with the step up in pace.

Hornets sucked in and took the game to Salford. On 16 minutes, Radney Bowker dabbed an inch perfect kick behind a static Salford defence for Mark McCully to plunge in and score. McCully added the extras.

Hornets then defended back-to-back sets on their own line - scrambling and throwing bodies into the tackle. Having retrieved posession and played out the set, Lee Birdseye launched a huge pressure relieving kick down field. Salford's prima donna winger Anthony Stewart fumbled the ball quite spectacularly and from the resulting scrum Radney Bowker sliced through a flat-footed Reds line to score. McCully banged over the conversion - Hornets ahead 12-10.

But this was no blip. McCully stretched the lead with a penalty and, on 35 minutes, Hornets produced a try that had Salford reduced to mere spectators. Phill Farrell's drive took Hornets close on the left. The ball was then switched left - rocketing through Bowker, Birdseye, McConnell and McCully's hands to send Andy 'the train' Saywell steaming through Stewart to score. Every pass crisply delivered; every recipient never breaking their stride - the perfect try.

Hornets 18-10 clear and Salford all over the place.

With the hooter iminent, Salford summoned up one last big effort and Baldwin spun out of some tired tackles to score. The conversion closed the gap, but - against the odds - Hornets went in at half time deservedly leading by 18-16.

Salford began the second half much as thney did the first. Tries from Alker (grubber bouncing precariously off Varkulis' chest) and Robinson (hurried passing and a desperate lunge) regained the lead. But this Hornets side doesn't know when to lie down.

Steadily, Hornets regained control; forcing Salford into a series of impotent last tackle manoevres that gifted us posession. BIg hits from the pack - most notably Cunliffe who shook Salford bones all afternoon - frustrated and drove the Reds back.

Just past the hour Hornets worked the ball smartly to the right. McCully dinked a teasing grubber behind Stewart and Ansy Saywell dived in for what looked a certain try. Convinced, the in-goal judge took up a 'try scored' position, but J. King went to his touch judge and - after a brief confab - declared the ball dead and awarded the drop out.

Giving Hornets the ball back was a very bad idea. More Hornets pressure in the Salford 20 metre zone forced the reds into knocking on. From the scrum, the ball was worked left for Radney Bowker to make a mug of his opposite number McGuiness and ghost through to score.

McCully banged over the extras and at 26-24, Salford looked spent. Hornets continued to batter away at the Reds defence - Salford's only real answer a series of hopeful downtown kicks and touchfinders.

Then came the mugging that was to decide this game. Salford flung the ball right on the last tackle; Robinson never shaped to turn either body or hands - the pass heading forward from the moment it took flight. The main stand came to its feet, incredulous. The touch judge stood off indicating a forward pass; but seeing J. KIng allowing play to continue, changed his mind and played on. Salford put the ball down in the corner - the ground resounding to the cries of 'cheat'; Richard Varkulis incandescent with rage at the touch judge.

After 73 minutes, this was probably the only way Salford were going to shake off a tenacious Hornets - and it had the desired effect.

A weary Hornets dragged themselves back upfield for one last push. Again, they forced a knock-on from the questionable Reds defence, but - half knackered, half rushed - Andy Gorski fumbled the ball at the back of the scrum and the game was gone.

The Hornets fans rose in appreciation of a quite superb perfromance - the myth of superior full-time fitness and skills shattered.

Make no mistake, a neutral would have struggled to pick the Super League team out of this contest and Rochdale Hornets certainly did enough to win.

As it is, it's Salford who progress - their reward, a televised tie against London that will do wonders for the Eastenders omnibus viewing figures.

This game was as good an advert for Rochdale Hornets as it would be possible to create. The many new - and old - faces in the crowd couldn't fail to have been impressed by the heart, determination and skills of this quite extraordinary Hornets side.

Robbed? Most certainly. Defeated: never.