BOLTON Thirds, led with great authority by their captain Marcus Rigby in the absence of the honeymooning Clarke, competed well in a hard fought game in diabolical conditions, before going down 12-0 at Disbury.

Bolton made a decision not to use any of the first team players and Rigby did a sterling job to get 15 players on to the park.

An early score by the Didsbury first team captain separated the two teams at half time, after a half that saw Patten nearly level the scores as he broke from his own half only to be slowed down in the ankle deep mud for the home side to regroup and clear the danger.

In a second half were Bolton defended for long periods the Sinar brothers., especially James, constantly ran the ball at the more experienced opposition. In desperate defence the young Bolton front row held out a succession of scrummages on their own five metre line much to the annoyance of the home side.

After such sterling work Bolton sensed a chance to win the game, but try as they may the break did not appear, and with the game slipping away the Didsbury captain went over for his second try of the game.

Rigby can be well pleased with his side's efforts in particular the younger players who performed well, and Patten showed great skills not only in the set scrummage but in open play were his tenacious aggression in the ruck and tackle caused problems for the home side all afternoon.

Jimmy Phillips looked happy in his accustomed role at full back and with better possession from the line out Bolton may have succeeded. PBOLTON Rugby Union Club's training schedule will continue as usual this week but with the training ground suffering under the recent downpour, alternative arrangements are being sought and should come into effect on Tuesday November. All players should look out for further details.

PThe coach will leave the club for Hoylake at 11.30. prompt, and as usual supporters are most welcome. Training plans

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<DIV>Bolton s scheduled league match at home against Didsbury fell foul of the atrocious weather conditions. As training did not take place at Avenue Street on Tuesday and Thursday for the same reasons it became obvious early on Saturday morning that the game was in danger. The first XV now find themselves in a non too familiar position, bottom of the league with two games in hand on several sides who are either on the same points or one or two in front. With Bolton having played the majority of their games against the better sides in the league this is giving a somewhat false position. However their cup exploits continue next week away at Hoylake on the Wirral, a side the club knows little about, but are expecting a tough encounter if they are to progress to last seasons heights of the quarter finals, before bowing out to the eventual winners Sheffield. The Tetley competition offers not only the chance to compete against teams from outside your own region, but also considerable financial rewards for each round you progress through. With this in mind and a precarious present league position Bolton will have to juggle the fixture list to accommodate a backlog of fixtures so early in the season, an enviable task for Dave Patchett the fixture secretary. </DIV>

<DIV>Some rugby did thankfully happen and the seconds and thirds travelled to Didsbury who deemed their pitches playable, although water polo or mud running should have been the order of the day. The seconds took an early lead with Bray kicking an earl penalty and Higgins scoring a fine solo try to give a eight point lead. Bolton s desire to attack was obvious and they tried to play rugby in the atrocious conditions, one thing missing from their game however was a desire to tackle and the home side scored two soft tries, both converted to give them a six point advantage. Bolton s response came from a further try from Higgins as the youngster showed great pace to score, Hackin on his return from injury added another try as Bolton went into half time with a 18 -14 lead.</DIV> <DIV>Didsbury bolstered their pack at half time from the large contingent of players stood on the line watching both games, and this brought immediate success as the Bolton scrummage struggled for the first time in the game, and the home side regained the lead. Bray put Bolton back in front with a penalty and with Houston, Hill and Nightingale performing well the lead was well justified. A second try by Hackin increased the gap and Bolton should have sealed the game. Penalties kicked by the home side closed the score and the game became tense and was destined for a close finish. However the home side with plenty of fresh legs upped the pace and in the last quarter they broke away to score the winning try, which was converted to give Didsbury a 32 - 26 victory. Bolton seconds can take heart from a good game against a strong squad of players, and with better defence could have come away with a win.</DIV> <DIV>The thirds brought together with great authority by their captain Marcus Rigby in the absence of the honeymooning Clarke competed well in a hard fought game in diabolical conditions, before going down twelve points to nil. Bolton made a decision not to use any of the first team players and Rigby did a sterling job to get fifteen players on to the park. An early score by the Didsbury first team captain separated the two teams at half time, in a half that saw Patten nearly level the scores as he broke form his own half only to be slowed down in the ankle deep mud for the home side to regroup and clear the danger. In a second half were Bolton defended for long periods the Sinar brothers with James in particular constantly ran the ball at the more experienced opposition. In desperate defence the young Bolton front row held out a succession of scrummages on their own five metre line much to the annoyance of the home side, after such sterling work Bolton sensed a chance to win the game, but try as they may the break did not appear, and with the game slipping away the Didsbury captain went over for his second try of the game. Rigby can be well pleased with his sides efforts in particular the younger players who performed well, and Patten showed great skills not only in the set scrummage but in open play were his tenacious aggression in the ruck and tackle caused problems for the home side all afternoon. Jimmy Phillips looked happy in his accustomed role at full back and with better possession from the line out Bolton may have succeeded.</DIV>

<DIV>Training at the club will continue this week, however with the training ground suffering under the recent downpour, alternative arrangements are being sought and should come into effect on Tuesday November 7th. All players look out for further details.</DIV>

<DIV>The coach will leave the club for Hoylake at 11.30. prompt, and as usual supporters are most welcome.</DIV></BODY></HTML>