Diss U13's vs Bury

Diss U13’s narrowly lost an extremely tight home match against Bury. Lots of good work was in evidence across the team, however disciplined rucking and passing cost the boys a match one felt they could (and should) have won.

On a dry, sunny day the Diss boys faced a team who were short of a couple of players – so were loaned two by Diss. It is worth noting the contrast with previous encounters when Diss were the ones who were typically receiving players from opposition teams. It is great to see how the U13’s squad has grown, and even with the absence of some regular players Diss were still fielding a strong team.

From the kick off it was clear the pitch would be a major factor in the match. The going underfoot was ‘very heavy’. From a Diss perspective it negated the team’s fast agile players who were unable to jink away from tackles with agile changes of direction, and use their pace. It meant the match became attritional, with two evenly matched sides, and a premium on basic rucking and passing.

In the first half possession ebbed and flowed. Some good runs by the Diss backs never quite made it to the try line, and robust tackling by a well-schooled Bury side made sure the boys earned every yard. Equally the Bury team should be complemented on their distribution and rucking. The hard work from the Diss boys paid off when a well-constructed move was finished by Jacob Fairtweather for the opening try.

It felt like a breakthrough that lead to more Diss tries, however it was Bury who grasped the initiative. A passage of play in the Diss final third ultimately led to a Bury try, followed by two more in quick succession. It is fair to say the scoreline of 3 Bury tries to 1 for Diss did not feel reflective of the overall play.

Diss continued to battle. Three moves looked ‘certain’ to score, but each was thwarted at the Bury try line. One from Jaiden Mutsambiwa , a second from Jacob Fairweather and a third from Jaden Johnson. A combination of outstanding Bury last man tackling, and some unfortunate slips of feet in the mud right at the score line meant Diss remained behind with the clock counting down.

With 5 minutes to play Diss ‘upped’ the pressure and pushed Bury right back to their try line. With the last play of the game the Diss boys won a penalty. From this the ball was passed down the line and run over for a try by Jaden Johnson.

Final score Diss 2 tries vs Bury 3 tries.

With the final whistle it was a pity the match was over. There are lessons to learn – particularly rucking and passing - but these are vastly out-weighed by the positives. Coaches Johnny and Mark both said this was one of the boy’s best performances. They are growing as a team, trusting in each other with strong resilience. As technical skills and knowledge continue to develop so will consistent results.

Well done to all and it was great to play on the main pitch with a large group of good natured Diss and Bury supporters cheering the boys on. I know from comments some of the boys made how much they enjoyed environment, so thank you to all supporters who made them feel so special.

The following provides a link to photos of the game https://www.pitchero.com/clubs/dissrugby/photos/u13s-vs-bury-jan-2017-795595.html

Peter Allott
Jan-2017