Bracknell 1st vs Diss 1st

Bracknell 43 - Diss 14

By Tony Kilos

Apart from the first 5 minutes, Bracknell when under initial pressure from Diss continued the improvement shown in the second half against Jersey. On seven minutes a Bracknell lineout resulted in a Diss knock on, from the resulting scrum Ollie Jordan broke through and scored under the posts with number 13 Jervis Manupenu converting. Three minutes later Bracknell charged down an attempted clearance by Diss with the loose ball being grounded by Phil Astbury and converted by Manupenu. At this point Bracknell were beginning to step on the gas and could have scored on several other occasions. A fine move broke down when the ball had been sent out to the wing instead of being played back inside. Diss rallied after this and retained the ball well to prevent Bracknell from going further ahead for a good 12 minutes or so.

Bracknell eventually came back into the game and changed gears yet again, the ball moved swiftly down the back line for Stuart Mackay to score in the corner. Manupenu missed with the conversion attempt. After a series of midfield scrums Diss were given a very soft converted try despite a fine defensive attempt by Luke Carter, who was left stranded and could not stop the hack through. Bracknell deservedly led 19 - 7 at half time.

Bracknell's domination of the match continued, Manupenu adding a penalty soon after the restart. A few more chances to score went astray but Bracknell soon scored with a fine effort from prop Johnny Mirza grounding the ball with 3 Diss players trying to stop him from making the line. Manupenu added the conversion. This try secured the bonus point for Bracknell which is a new addition to the scoring system in the Leagues this year. Approximately 5 minutes later Kyle Lovell burst away from a loose maul to score the first of his two tries. At this point Bracknell were looking good for a big points haul, but Diss managed to score from a total lapse of concentration from Bracknell who believed they were cruising. The score jolted some of the Bracknell players and Lovell scored his second try on 78 minutes, this was again converted by Manupenu to complete the scoring for the day. Bracknell can take a lot from this match but it has to be noted that there is still room for more improvement as they continue their quest with the season. Bracknell’s pre-season fitness training is starting to show already in the respect that for the last two weeks they have finished the stronger side of the two teams on the park each time, well done and keep it going guy’s. The team should be congratulated on a highly entertaining performance.