Wisbech 7 : 15 Diss 3rd XV - 13th September '14

Diss thirds began their league campaign with the long journey to Wisbech and started the season with a win.

The game started at a frenzy and Diss soon began to play the best rugby. The game had hardly got going when Charlie Oakes the prop for Diss had to come off injured for an ankle injury. New player Andy McAlister came off the bench and made an immediate impact with a good run on the right wing almost scoring a try. Wisbech began to give away penalty after penalty and soon Diss found themselves 9-0 up halfway during the first half.

Another injury to winger Ben Holdsworth who had a nasty cut on his right eye meant Diss had to make another substitution which involved veteran Lee Lawton from Bradford coming on for only his third game of rugby union. Diss finished the half pressing the Wisbech defence and could have had scored through Fergus Newman, Will Cragg and Will Appleton but all three players were held up on the Wisbech try line.

The second half followed the same [pattern, John Llewellyn and Mike Garnham, dominated the line outs and Diss again should have scored soon after the restart through good play by Benny Goodman and Fergus Newman. Another injury for Diss meant Barnaby Chenery came off with 30 minutes of the second half to go with another ankle injury but Diss battled through with fourteen men.

More Wisbech indiscipline gave Diss another penalty which Naz Gurgin scored. Wisbech in the dying minutes scored a consolation try through a replacement but Diss held on for a deserved victory. The game was marred however by the three injuries to 3 of Diss’s best young players.