Oswestry 17 - 27 Didsbury Toc H

A composed second-half performance from Toc ensured they began 2018 on the right track after securing a bonus-point win away from home.

January is going to be about settling some scores for Didsbury.

It can be hard to stay positive after losing four of the first five games of a season - but the return fixtures against the teams who inflicted those defeats were a motivation for Toc when they were busy clawing themselves away from the foot of the table.

One of those losses came at the hands of Oswestry who, in the dying minutes, won the opening game of the season at Simon Field. A much-improved display against them on Saturday was as pleasing as it was necessary. It is also an indication that the team is heading in the right direction.

Of course, results later this month will prove just how far this squad has come in the past four months - but on the evidence of the second-half performance here, the signs are promising.

The truth is that Toc have never felt too far off the pace in South Lancs and Cheshire 2. There are some handy sides in the division, no question, but Didsbury feel they can compete with them all.

To do so consistently, they will have to cut out some of the mental lapses which still threaten to undo so much of their good work. However, there were signs against Oswestry that their style of play is becoming more repeatable and consistent.

For some of the big games on the horizon the squad will also welcome back several notable absentees, including Owen MacIntosh, Mark Harrison, Seb Sheratte, Tom Quigley and Tom O’Brien.

Given the usual slew of winter cancellations due to Manchester’s inclement weather, this was the first game in over a month for the 1st XV. So some early rustiness was expected.

After taking the lead through the boot of winger Tom Makin, a period of sloppy attacking play allowed Oswestry to score a couple of tries by capitalising on Didsbury’s mistakes.

At 12-3 down, Toc had to respond and duly did through full-back Rory Gibson, who finished off a flowing multi-phase move in the left corner. It was the standout try of the game.

Oswestry finished the half strongly to lead 17-10 at the break - but from Didsbury’s perspective there was never any real sense that this game was in danger of slipping away.

Josh Vize was orchestrating things tidily at scrum-half and Toc’s backs had started to look more threatening as the first period wore on. The weight of Didsbury's ball carrying and tackling was also starting to yield some good results. New signing Paddy Mooney made an instant impact on his debut. Moving easily between the back row and centre, he added impetus and energy with and without the ball. Mooney made some shuddering tackles and was ably-supported by Vize, Max Simmons and Harry Rigby who made significant contributions of their own.

Toc spent almost all of the second period in Oswestry’s half. The pressure was unceasing because Didsbury were also much more accurate after the break. Their ball retention was better, the scrum ball was cleaner and the lineout was functioning so smoothly that even Toc’s under-rated and underused driving maul made an appearance.

Not long into the second half, hooker Mike Hyde burrowed over from close range to get the score back to 17-15. Ben Platt then walked one in on the left wing following another period of sustained pressure. His was a wonderfully simple, well-executed score.

With the lead, Toc started to play with more confidence. Direct running from Mooney, Rigby and Tom Bunn was by now breaking up the game - but they still needed to make it a two-score game.

Poor discipline on the Oswestry line kept offering the home side easy ways to relieve the pressure, normally through the cannon boot of their outside centre.

But the territorial advantage eventually told when Gibson, a running threat for much of the afternoon, counter attacked from a loose kick and wriggled free down the left wing to cross for his second. Makin added the conversion.

Until this point it had been a near-flawless second half performance from Toc. But with a ten-point lead going into the final five minutes, they lost concentration and did some amazingly naive things in trying to close out the game.

The madness made for some memorable mentions on a lively coach trip back from Whitchurch, which is where this game was played due to the weather that made Oswestry’s pitches unplayable. So thanks to both clubs for getting the match on.

Man of the match: Mark Chambers.

Next game:
January 13th: Aspull, home.