Burton had to win to progress beyond the group stage of the Papa Johns Mens Community Cup but just missed out as Tring made a fine second half recovery after trailing at half time in a thrilling game at Battlestead Croft in front of a lively “Ladies Day” crowd. Conditions for the game were good although the normal prevailing wind had returned blowing quite strongly from left to right, looking from the stand. They opted to play against this in the first half hoping to use it to pin Tring deep in their own territory as the game progressed.
Tring kicked off the game and Burton started in fine fashion and made their way back into the opponents’ half with some impressive ball carrying. The Tring forwards looked big compared to the home team and showed their strength in the first scrum of the game. Despite travelling backwards at an alarming rate Burton did manage to retain possession but were penalised for killing the ball in a ruck. The next penalty went to Burton, and they had an opportunity to try their luck with a catch and drive at the first lineout, but Tring showed they would be very competitive in this area as they stole possession and started to put together a series of forwards-based phases of play.
The game settled in the middle of the pitch with both sides cancelling each other out to some degree. The early signs for the home team, particularly in defence, were encouraging bearing in mind the physical threat that Tring were offering. Burton looked to vary the length of throws in the lineouts to counter Tring’s strength but were undone by the strong breeze blowing the ball off-line. As the game began to expand beyond the centre of the pitch it was clear that neither side would be broken down very easily and it would take high quality play to produce scoring opportunities.
Not surprisingly the first scoring opportunity for either side came in the form of a penalty attempt at goal after 16 minutes of the half to give Tring the lead. Burton 0-3 Tring. Burton’s first attempt to move the ball wide was well defended by the visitors but that did not deter them from trying again. Burton were rewarded though a few minutes later when Chaz Bunting and Tristan DeJager exchanged passes in a move that started just inside their own half and resulted in DeJager scoring a fine try on the right mid-way through the half. Simpson added the conversion to give Burton the lead. Burton 7-3 Tring.
The try gave Burton a real boost and they looked to add to their score with another handling move down the right, but DeJager was just pipped to the touchdown by the Tring defenders following hid own kick through. With Burton enjoying a good period they suffered a setback when talisman, Jack Neale had to leave the pitch with a rib injury and was replaced by Stephen Hunt.
The defences of both teams were so dominant in the game this forced several errors on both sides as they each searched for a way to break through. Tring were forced to open up play a little more than they probably would have liked and were let down by their handling on a number of occasions giving Burton the opportunity to turnover possession. Equally, Burton found themselves trying to force their passes a little as they looked to stretch Tring and move them around the pitch hoping they would tire.
As the half went on the patterns of play remained very much the same with Burton having to rely on breaking out from their own half to make any real territorial gain. Indeed it was one of these moves that almost produced a second try for Burton but the final pass of the move to Bunting did not hit its target with the try line begging! Tring were also guilty of not taking advantage of a rare overlap minutes later which would have almost certainly resulted in a try for them before the break. With their next move though Tring did actually cross the line following a good handling move from left to right a foot in touch meant the try was ruled out and the referee blew his whistle for half time with Burton leading by 4 points. Burton 7-3 Tring.
Burton started the second half very brightly and enjoyed their best period of prolonged possession. Forwards and backs alike were involved as they made slow but steady progress into the Tring danger zone. However just as it seemed almost inevitable that they would score a wild long pass went astray and the opportunity was gone. Tring had survived an early onslaught form the home team and they took great heart from this as they soon began to make ground themselves through their effective forwards-based play which saw them dominate possession and gain valuable territory over the next few minutes.
Burton eventually managed to get the ball back and were equally effective with their forwards dominated phase of play which saw them get back to just outside the Tring “22” in the centre of the pitch. With a penalty awarded after 10 minutes of the second half, Burton opted to kick for goal and Simpson made no mistake to increase Burton’s lead to 7 points. Burton 10-3 Tring. This signalled the start of Tring’s almost total dominance of possession for the remainder of the game as they went in search for the win which would ensure their progression in this competition.
Tring scored their first try of the game in the left corner following a good handling move from right to left created a slight overlap which they took with a fair degree of skill and pace. The conversion was missed so Burton still held the lead with almost 15 minutes of the half gone. Burton 10-8 Tring. The visitors did not have long to wait before they scored their second try of the game mid-way through the half although the Burton defence made them work very hard for it. Burton 10-13 Tring.
Burton tried desperately to get themselves back into the Tring danger zone but with limited possession now the pressure began to mount as deep kicks looking to gain valuable territory twice went dead meaning they were back inside their own half without possession. Burton showed their desire and fight for their club in the way they defended almost relentless pressure from a dominant Tring team, but the result was probably already known amongst the home supporters as their team could not get hold of the ball on a sustained basis which meant when they did get it things were having to be really forced and they were not able to create momentum and flow in their game.
As the game approached its conclusion Burton had one more chance to claim a dramatic win. A lineout just inside the Tring half saw a rare loss of tempers and a scuffle broke out which resulted in a Tring yellow card and a penalty to Burton. Simpson kicked to touch brilliantly setting up what was to be the final lineout of the game. Tring stole the throw once again and cleared to touch, which then signalled the final whistle being blown and Burton suffering a narrow loss. However this means the Staffordshire cup final against Stoke will go ahead as planned next week at Lichfield and on this showing Burton will fancy their chances against a team they have already beaten twice in the league this season.