Sloppy defence leads to another defeat on the road

Matlock made the long journey to Leighton Buzzard in positive mood despite more enforced changes to the starting line-up but in the knowledge that this fixture has proved to be something of a jinx since Buzzard came up into the league several years ago. With several members of the squad already on the injury list the additional absence of Dave Hartley and late withdrawal by Tim Taylor led to further reshuffling, with Whittaker and the returning Coombes both taking up unfamiliar roles in the back three.
The game began with Matlock playing up the pronounced slope and when Young’s kick-off failed to carry the required ten metres there was a feeling of déjà vu regarding past performances on this ground. From the resulting scrum Buzzard showed their league position doesn’t reflect their ability and only a dropped pass prevented them from scoring. Minutes later they crossed the line for a converted try following good work by their pack. Immediately Matlock struck back with a Young penalty kick only for Buzzard to add a second try capitalising on a Matlock mistake whilst trying to run out from their own 22 and then added a third try following a charge down taking the score to 17-3 with less than half an hour played. Matlock were misfiring in the backs and with Neville out of sorts were unable to rely on his normal powerful runs up the middle. However Young continued to probe and when a Buzzard attack broke down in Matlock’s 22 Young quickly spotted an opportunity and kicked over the defence for Packard to show his paces to score his first try. Young added the extras and Matlock were 17-10 down at half time but still in touch despite not playing well. Matlock had also lost Whittaker with a shoulder injury after a fine try saving tackle. He was replaced by Morton.
A few strong words at half time saw Matlock start strongly after the break and another Young penalty soon reduced the arrears to 17-13. However this spell was short-lived as Buzzard went on to score three more tries in a ten minute spell in which Matlock’s decision making was questionable and tackling was particularly sloppy. To their credit Matlock rallied again and scored two converted tries through the impressive Lewis Richardson and the pacey Packard to bring the score to 34-27. At this point Matlock were finishing the stronger and looked likely to snatch the victory but an overlap was ignored when Howard would have had a simple run in and then a definite try was disallowed after Cooper forced his way over but the referee was unfortunately unsighted. Leighton Buzzard gratefully ground out the remaining few minutes for a win which was well deserved on the day but which had been largely handed to them on a plate leaving Matlock settling for a bonus point.
Whilst this was a disappointing performance in many ways, it was good to see the character of the side to come back from 34-13 down to almost steal the win. Injuries to Whittaker and Bunting will however further test the depth of this young squad. This result was a real wake up call for the squad after the demolition of Ilkeston in the previous game and they will have to work hard together this week in preparation for the next game at home to Market Rasen & Louth this Saturday kick off 2.15pm.