St Edwards OB’s 5 – 22 Didsbury Toc H

Toc H started brightly and they were able to control the early possession and launch a number of attacking moves, which the St Edwards defence was equal to. The first few scrums were a mess with both teams struggling to maintain ball on their own put in, and Didsbury were able to win a number of freekicks and penalties from the home sides put in’s. A penalty kick was put into touch for an attacking lineout, and the Didsbury pack exerted the pressure to force their way over the tryline. It seemed as though club stalwart prop Tony Ames would score the try, but the ever alert Gaz Oakley snaffled the ball to claim the touch down (0-5). Despite spending large periods of time on the attack for the remainder of the half, a mixture of poor decision making and stoic defence kept Didsbury from increasing their lead. And to compound the missed opportunities the sides went into halftime level, after a defensive mix up allowed the home side to score a try (5-5).

Didsbury gathered themselves at halftime and looked to improve on their first half efforts. A tactical change saw explosive winger Enita Okodiko take to the field, a decision that was to prove to be decisive in the outcome of the match.

From an early lineout a set move found Okodiko racing through the centre channel, and despite a number of defenders in his way, they were powerless to stop him reaching the tryline. Ian Jenkinson, who again had an assured game at 10, added the conversion to extend the lead to 5-12. Okodiko was again into action as he scored his second try after a long spell of possession by the visitors (5-17). Didsbury continued to look the more likely victors, but St Edwards were still a threat with some surging runs. But Toc H always looked to have the more quality with Mark Harrison, Andy Lynn and Olly Thomas all prominent in loose. With the game nearing the end, Captain Mike Hyde had a disagreement with an opposition player that saw them both go to the sinbin and with the last attack of the game the wily Dave Hoare was able to latch onto a kick through to score in the corner. That fourth try secured maximum league points for Didsbury and a final score of 5-22.

The victory made it three wins out of three on the road this season for Toc H, and took them to fourth in the North Lancs 1 league table, level on points with second. There are still areas to work on for Didsbury who will look for further improvement in their next league fixture on the 26th October at home against Oldham.