Coventry Bears 42-12 Distington

It was a cold, bright day at Butts Park and the BBC cameras were in place to stream this Ladbrokes Challenge Cup round three tie to a vastly bigger audience than has ever watched these two sides before, and who represent very different aspects of the game.

Distington, the long-established amateur side from the Cumbrian heartland of the game, had a 460-mile round trip and entered as underdogs.

This was the first time they had ventured to the Midlands to play the game, and it was to be a great experience.

Coventry Bears, the Midlands new kids on the block, were playing in the cup at home for the very first time, and also found themselves in the unaccustomed role of Goliath facing up to David.

The Bears kicked off and were soon on the offensive, and were soon showing inventiveness in attack, with an incisive kick by Ben Stead cutting the Distington defence, but the away side soon recovered and showed they could be a match for the semi-pro side.

The Cumbrians continued to defend well, forcing Bears’ Chapman into touch, and were soon on the offensive themselves.

Their passing game threatened the home side on several attacks. Distington’s Kieran Richie came close, but their first points were to come from a penalty as Clayton Sutton put the Cumbrian side into the lead.

The game was close and tense with little between the sides.

The Bears were next to gain a penalty close in but chose to run with the ball, a decision proved right as Harry Chapman crossed the line and Ben Stead converted to put the League One side 6-2 up.

The two sides still appeared evenly matched and, following a kick which Dante Morley-Samuels couldn’t hold, Gregory Bedford sprinted to the try line, and Suttons conversion made it 8-6 in favour of Distington. Game on.

The Cumbrian amateurs showed that they would certainly be no pushover, with Bryan Ritchie being outstanding as they pushed even harder.

Coventry’s attacking flair came to the rescue as Jason Bass snatched back the lead having caught a superb Emanuellili kick.

Stead was the instigator of the Bears next score with a kick fumbled in the corner, allowing Jason Bass an easy chance. Stead’s conversion put the score 18-8 in Coventry’s favour at half-time.

If anything, the 10-point lead flattered the Midlanders. Could an upset be on the cards in front of the TV cameras?

The second half started with both teams still believing they could win, and Distington played a ball into the corner which was uncharacteristically fumbled by Coventry’s defence on the line, allowing Bedford to get four points for Distington.

The conversion fell short, but there was now just six points between the sides. This proved to be a high water-mark for the amateurs as the Bears fitness was now about to show.

A period of prolonged attack finally paid dividends for the Bears as Chris Barratt crossed over, followed two minutes later by Lewis Lord. The two conversions gave the hosts a 30-12 lead.

But, even after this onslaught, Distington showed they could tackle like demons and they certainly weren’t in the mood for giving up.

With a quarter-of-an-hour left, Bear Hayden Freeman was the final recipient of a string of passes. And Stead was yet again successful with the conversion.

The game was now over as Chapman scored one more time for the Bears and the conversion sealed it at 42-12.

At the end, Bears coach Tom Tsang reflected on a job accomplished.

“We’re delighted to be through to the fourth round for the first time. Distington gave us a good fight and we know we have to improve,” he said.

Distington head coach Carl Hewer was proud of his side, and said: “For long spells, we were equals but Coventry deserved the win.”