It is small wonder that Salem centre Conor Wood was delighted to get through his first 80 minutes of the season in the return Yorkshire Division One fixture against Ribb.

"I really enjoyed it," he said. "No, make that loved it as it had been a nightmare season up to that point with the injury, suspension and lay-off due to Christmas."

This was a classic game of two halves, with the visitors leading 8-7 at the interval before conceding seven tries in the second half as Salem showed their superior fitness, with Ribb's first-half edge in the forwards becoming but a distant memory.

Wood, son of former Yorkshire, Wakefield and Bradford & Bingley second-row Paul, admitted: "I was not worried at half-time as I felt that we were in control." As for the rest of the season, he added: "I see no reason why we cannot finish in the top four."

Salem are four places and ten points off that at the moment but it is achievable if they put together a winning run, with next week's match against third-placed Old Brodleians being the kind of away fixture they must win in order to make that happen.

Ribb's injury crisis has meant they have lost four of their last five matches and are now bottom as Yarnbury gained a losing bonus point at home to Heath.

Yet there was little evidence of the spirited Settle-based visitors being cellar dwellers in the first 40 minutes as they made Salem's pack look worryingly ordinary, taking the lead when scrum half Peter Cook scampered over from 25 metres down the blindside following a line-out.

An eighth-minute try from full back Danny Belcher, which he also converted, edged Salem 7-5 ahead – but they were denied an interval advantage when fly half Michael Thwaite kicked a 40th-minute penalty after his opposite number Andy Robinson was sin-binned for infringing in the home team's 22.

But Ribb should really have been more than a point to the good as they had Salem's pack back-pedalling several times deep in the red zone without being able to finish off the attacks.

Despite leading 8-7, Ribb felt they needed the security of scoring first in the second half – but not only did they not achieve that, they conceded the opening four tries after the interval.

No 8 Christian Baines capitalised on a penalty kick to the corner to drive over from close range, centre Harry Hall ran a great line from an exquisite delayed Robinson pass, Belcher went over on the right and winger Ryan Smith crossed on the left after a break by Wood and good support from Hall.

Three Belcher conversions from the touchline or close to it stretched the margin to 33-8 and No 8 Richard Wood's try in the 67th minute, after good work by their man of the match Will Booth, proved an isolated response.

Michael Thwaite converted but Ribb were back under their sticks three more times as Salem's man of the match Baines added two tries to complete his hat-trick and Robinson scored on the right in the 79th minute.

Belcher nailed two more conversions to make it six from eight off the tee, with his second miss being that of Robinson's try after Ribb had been reduced to 14 men by a yellow card for Cook after a tip-tackle on Smith from the kick-off following Baines' third try.