Bury...14pts Kirby Lonsdale...0pts: BURY played host to fellow league strugglers Kirby Lonsdale hoping to improve on their last meeting which resulted in a draw, writes MIKE JONES.

Not only was the weather much changed, but so was the Kirby Lonsdale side, unrecognisable from that which played in the sweltering heat early last September.

Bury themselves fielded only seven players from the previous meeting.

The first five minutes of the game dictated the style of play for the whole encounter. Neither side exhibited much flair, but the tackling from both forwards and threequarters was of the highest order.

This was reflected in that all Bury's first half points came from penalties as the visitors defended their line well.

Having said that, Bury laid siege to the Kirby Lonsdale 22 for the first ten minutes and having won three successive line-outs should have kept the ball tight in the forwards and rucked and mauled their way to the line.

However in attempting crossfield passing moves the territorial advantage was wasted.

Twenty minutes into the game stand off Glyn Smith hoisted a high kick dropping on the visitors 22 metre line. It was late tackled and he easily converted the resulting penalty to open the scoring.

He was to add a further three points five minutes later when the Kirby tighthead prop was penalised for illegal binding in the set scrum.

Smith completed his hat-trick in the 32nd minute in a move started and finished by himself.

Awarded a penalty on his own 10-metre line, using the advantage of the strong downfield wind, he found touch 22 metres out.

Bury won the line-out and as they rolled the ball off Kirby were penalised for not retiring in the maul and Smith obliged by converting the resulting penalty.

In the dying minutes of the half left wing John Sheppey, with a long, low kick which tracked the touchline, caught his opposite number in possession and though well backed up the ball was bundled into touch and Kirby were able to clear their lines.

Bury turned at the interval nine points to the good, but now faced a strong wind into their faces.

In almost a mirror image of the first ten minutes of the first half Bury exerted pressure in the Kirby 22 and did cross the line with the ball held in the maul, but were unable to ground.

Kirby had little response to the Bury pressure in the pack, but the strong wind allowed them to clear their lines by kicking upfield.

Bury were forced to retreat in these situations and gave away penalties in the 12th and 14th minutes for offside, but Kirby had left their kicking boots at home.

Penalties were probably the only threat that Bury could fear as the tackling by the brothers McLeod, Harvey Leeming and backed up by flank forwards John Westwood, Bernard Robinson and Martin Freschini shut down their opportunities time and time again.

The game was sealed in the 70th minute with a classic try starting from a penalty from Glyn Smith to give Bury a line-out seven metres from the opponents try line.

Hooker Darren Whitehead dummied to throw long, jumper lock forward Martin Kennedy shortened the line and took possession and with the back row aided by props Jason Smyth and Dave Shimmons, drove Robinson over the line at a controlled gallop.

The home crowd went wild and a stunned silence came over the large Kirby contingent, game, set and match.

Both sides suffered from injuries, but more so the visitors, though Bury were to lose full back Paul McGarraghy with a knee injury to be replaced by Mark Stott.

The visitors lost a prop with ruptured back muscles, flank forward with a head injury requiring stitches and the openside flank to concussion.

BURY: Smyth, Whitehead, Shimmons, Kennedy, Smithson, Westwood, Freschini, Robinson, D Stott, Smith, Sheppey, C McLeod, Leeming, L McLeod, McGarraghy. Replacements: M Stott (for McGarraghy 75 mins).