National League 3 London & SE Bury St Edmunds 42 Tring 22 In the end Bury ran out worthy winners but they contrived to make the victory harder than it ought to have been.

Bury scored within four minutes of the start, having earned field position a solid scrum allowed full back Mike Sage to join the line and coast over for a straight forward score which he converted to put Bury 7-0 up.

Tristan Rawclife added another try to make it 12-0 after just 15 minutes, before the third try arrived courtesy of White having too much power from a regulation backs move after a Bury scrum in the visitors 22. 19-0 Bury.

Tring were showing signs of fight and when Lambden broke through some weak tackling in midfield, they had the patience to recycle the ball in the Bury 22 to create the space for Hicks to dive over and make it 19–7.

The superb Sage added a penalty before Tring scored again as winger Richard Roberts won the chase for a kick through. At half-time, it was 22-14 to Bury.

Despite now having to play into the strong wind, Tring emerged a much more positive side to the one that started the game.

George Bretag-Norris was shown a yellow when he was adjudged to have deliberately pulled down a well organised Tring driving maul and Browne kicked the resulting penalty. After 55 minutes the score now stood at 22–17.

Tring, fighting for their lives at the foot of the table, sniffed a rare away victory and with the extra man up front they were beginning to cause Bury some real problems.

Bury meanwhile seemed to have an inertia about them and they were crying out for someone to take the game by the scruff of the neck.

That person came in the form of Tim Mann. The diminutive centre deservedly was awarded the Bury Bulk Powders man of the match award as his powerful direct running in the midfield proved the undoing of Tring.

A barnstorming run down the left hand side got Bury in behind the defence. Greg White was up in good support to pick out James Solomon and he had no problem in outpacing his opposite number. Bonus try in the bag and audible relief all around The Greene King Haberden.

Four minutes later and Mann almost did it again! Another bullocking run down the centre of the park put Sam Bixby over but the referee correctly spotted that the final pass was forward.

Tring had however transgressed during the move and Sage slotted home the penalty as a reward, making it 32–17.

With Norris back on the pitch and Tring now down to 14 players the game now looked long gone for the visitors.

With five minutes left on the clock Bury scored their fifth try. Again it was that man Mann that did the damage – another midfield break gave the space for Shaq Meyers to burst through some tired tackles and then sprint to the line.

In the closing minutes Sage added an extra penalty to make it 17 points from the boot whilst a late rally by the visitors scored them a try from a catch and drive but they could not secure a bonus point fourth try.

It is a good sign that when you don’t play at your best you still win, and the victory, allied to London Irish going down at Hertford moved Bury joint top with the Londoners.

Bury travel to Westcliff next week before a mouth-watering clash with the Irishmen at the end of the month!