Chiller Thriller

Rossendale captain Ieuan Dwyfor-Jones won the toss and chose to kick off and his side charged forward to successfully pin the visitors into their own half. After 3 minutes and a succession of rucks and a to and fro of possession, Rossendale finally gained some useful possession and fed the ball quickly onto the left wing where Rowan Hopkinson received and sprinted through a couple of tackles to score.

Rossendale maintained the pressure from the restart, chasing down their opposite numbers denying them the opportunity to gain any momentum. The forward support play was excellent and they were frequently able to drive their own maul gaining valuable yardage. Their second try came from just such a tactic after Max Haworth managed to keep his feet when tackled then gained immediate support from Elliott Newell, Reece Howarth and Ieuan Dwyfor-Jones, soon followed by Nuri Stoner and Joe Bedlow who forced the maul some 15 yards down field over the try line where Max was finally able to ground the ball for a try.

Rossendale may have been guilty of letting their guard down as Bury responded with two quick tries and then after 12 minutes scored a third to take the lead.

Ieuan Dwyfor-Jones rallied his troops and their defence stiffened tackling form Haig Howarth, Dan Dunham and Nathan Waddington stifled several Bury attacks and gradually handed the momentum back to Rossendale. From a scrum Josh Beeken at number 9, not for the first time, was quick to give his backs the opportunity to run the ball and a fine move was finished off by Jack Whittaker collecting the ball at speed and darting through the last line of defence to level the score at half time 21 a piece.

The second half proved to be a more defensive affair, both sides determined not to let their opponents run the ball.

Once again it was the driving maul that proved decisive. Bury conceded a 5 metre attacking scrum having held up the ball from a previous attack. The Rossendale scrum had worked well all game and once more the pack delivered quick ball for Josh Beeken, Bury were quick to tackle but failed to put the man down and Nuri Stoner gripping resolutely to the ball was forced over the line by several of his team mates and grounded the ball to seal a well deserved victory for his side.

Next season as the team progress to U13s level they will be playing on a full sized pitch which will allow plenty of opportunity for the players to move the ball wide and take advantage of the open spaces. Today the Rossendale U12s showed they have the ability to adapt to this style of play and it should bode them well for the new season.