Diss Rugby Club slip to 13th straight defeat in London 1 North at the hands of Ruislip
Diss’ losing streak in London 1 North has reached 13 matches following Saturday’s 36-8 defeat the hands of Ruislip.
The fixture was earmarked as one that presented the Blues with a chance of getting their first win of the campaign, given that the visitors sat third from bottom and had triumphed just once this term.
However, despite taking an early lead, the issues that have hampered Diss all campaign came to the fore once again, allowing the west London side to eventually run out victors by a comfortable margin.
In the opening exchanges Ruislip were penalised for not releasing the ball and that handed Chris Beaird the chance to kick the hosts into a three-point lead, which he duly took.
However, rather than build upon that advantage Diss were instead dominated, while keeping possession proved to be tough.
Ruislip’s first try came from a driving maul and within 20 minutes Diss had conceded a further four tries.
Diss tried to respond before the half was out, but despite carving out some good opportunities, possession was surrendered too easily and the chances went begging.
Having taken stock during the break, the home team responded by driving the Ruislip eight off the ball, establishing a foothold in the Ruislip half.
John Bergin, Matt Richards and Nick Garnham drove around the fringes, while Warren Wilby and Andre Dunn exploited the gaps appearing in the Ruislip midfield.
They were rewarded when Beaird crashed over following a continuity of play, but Ruislip also remained a threat and they did more than enough to seal a first away victory of the season.
Tomorrow bottom-of-the-table Diss travel to face third-placed rivals North Walsham (2pm).
* Diss III racked up an impressive 69-7 home victory over Dereham in the Eastern Counties Greene King 2 North on Saturday.
The hosts were rampant from the off, spending much of the opening 40 minutes inside the visitors’ half.
They had successfully wrapped up the bonus point by the half-time whistle, going in 41 points to the good with the likes Paul Cayley and John Alexander both contributing braces.
Tom Webster, Paul Austin and Josh Marlow all added their names to the scoresheet during the second half, helping Diss to reach a total of 11 tries from the encounter.
The one-sided win has left Diss sitting third in the table, eight points adrift of table-topping Holt II and just two points behind second-placed Watton.
The thirds will play their last game before the Christmas break tomorrow when they travel to face second-from-bottom West Norfolk II (2pm).
Diss were big winners when the sides met at Mackenders on the second Saturday of the season, coming out on top by 51-7.
