Bury admirably attempted the improbable on their final Sunday of the season, sending teams to both the final match of the Suffolk Cup and also the Suffolk Plate final. Despite their best efforts and some very close matches, they ultimately came up agonisingly short in both competitions.

The Suffolk Plate finals day kicked off early on a bright but breezy coastal pitch at Southwold. A three-way battle for the title was setup between Southwold (hosting by virtue of their better qualifying record), Harwich and Bury. Harwich were the first opponents and Bury used the wind and slight slope to apply early pressure. In the third minute a good pick and drive from a strong Bury scrum by number eight Jack Griggs created space for flying winger Ollie Cooper to expertly step his way past the remaining defenders and speed away to score for an early lead. Harwich fought back but some great defensive work from Toby Coogan, Henry Hitt and Will Blackwell kept them at bay until Bury scored an early contender for try of the day on seven minutes. A training ground lineout move worked to perfection, Griggs providing clean ball off the top which was swiftly moved through the hands to reach Reuben Sorooshian. He was in no mood to disappoint, a beautiful show and go completely wrong-footing the covering defence before using his electric pace on the outside to run away and score.

Charlie Feehan was controlling things well at fly-half, and both Toby Coogan and Jack Griggs were winning plenty of ball at the breakdown. A lovely kick from captain Todd Hutchinson led to a driven lineout from Bury, releasing Jake Sadler to bump off desperate defenders and score a well-worked try before half-time. The second half was harder work against the wind and up the hill, and an early scare from Harwich was only avoided when the Bury pack won a scrum against the head on their own 5m line. Todd Hutchinson was kicking well and after another good break from Griggs it was Hutchinson who stepped a defender and scored under the posts. He converted his own try to leave Bury 22-0 ahead. Ollie Cooper continued his all-round impressive game with some solid tackling and Charlie Feehan relieved any pressure with a long kick and chase. With only a few minutes left on the clock Harwich did add a consolation try when an unsighted referee missed the ball being dropped over the Bury line after some good driving play. This left the final score at 22-7 to Bury and a very satisfactory first match of the day.

Over in Colchester, the tension was palpable as the final game of the Suffolk Plate took to the pitch. Bury won the coin toss and played with the wind at the backs for the first half. James Walshe started the match by showing his electrifying pace and solid tackling as Bury applied good early pressure. A dominant scrum provided the backline with an early opportunity to show their handling skills and they did not disappoint – sending Walshe away to score. George Howard converted to make it 7-0. Colchester fought back well, demonstrating some great handling of their own and only some strong tackling from George Howard and Ben Hewett kept them at bay. The Bury set piece continued to dominate, Harry Wooldridge doing his utmost to disrupt the lineout, but every time Colchester had the ball in hand they attacked with purpose.

Bury were soaking up pressure well, but some uncharacteristic handling errors were starting to creep into their game as they perhaps snatched at their possession opportunities a little. The penalty count was rising significantly against them as well, despite what appeared to be an evenly matched share of offences. On twenty minutes, slightly against the run of play, it was Bury who scored the next try. A Colchester lineout was once again disrupted by Harry Wooldridge, and Charlie Chapman showed great skill and awareness to collect and charge forwards. A series of determined drives from the pack stretched the Colchester defences, before Ben Hewett dived over to score. George Howard again added the extras to leave Bury 14-0 up.

Finlay Blair was having a typically livewire performance and made great territory with a quickly taken penalty. His break was in vain though when the referee deemed him to be holding on in the subsequent ruck (despite the ball coming out cleanly on the Bury side in under two seconds). Further penalties were awarded to Colchester who took full advantage with a clever chip and chase to score near the posts. Bury came back well direct from the re-start, Callum Wilson successfully chasing and taking the ball on the full before Vincent La Starza made further ground. However, Colchester responded with some great attacking play and added an excellent try to narrow the score line to 12-14. The Colchester backline was really purring now, putting together some great moves, and when Bury did get the chance to counter attack they were pulled back for another penalty to the home side. Despite starting brightly, Bury were under the cosh and grateful for the half-time whistle.

Back in sunny Southwold, the home side played their opening match and beat Harwich comprehensively 32-14. This meant that the final game between Southwold and Bury would be a winner takes all affair. Bury again won the toss and played down the slope in the first half, although by now the wind had dissipated somewhat. With the first play of the match Charlie Feehan made a lovely break, before side-stepping the Southwold full-back to score a great try under the posts. Todd Hutchinson added the extras to secure the early advantage. Thomas Treneman was excelling in open play, producing some strong counter rucking and Bury were controlling the opening phases. Southwold fought back well however, and soon had their noses in front – two quick tries putting Bury onto the back foot. Just before half-time a cruel injury to Henry Hitt, sustained when putting in a great defensive tackle, robbed Bury of their influential scrum-half for the remainder of the match, and for a short period the match went to uncontested scrums as injuries and a squad of only 17 caught up with them.

The second half opened with Reuben Sorooshian making another long weaving break down the pitch, but this time he was held up just short. The game was moving end to end but it was Southwold who scored next, giving them a lead of 19-7. Bury fought hard and showed such great determination to get back into the game; an increasingly desperate Southwold defence lost two players to yellow cards as the pressure told. Captain Todd Hutchinson led by example and cleverly barged over before converting his own score but, despite their best efforts, Bury could not find any more points and Southwold made use of plenty of fresh legs to help them win 19-14. A fair result on the day but Bury can take a lot of credit for getting so close and for never giving up, whilst also producing fine performances across the whole squad.

Down at Colchester the second half was underway, with Bury looking to reassert themselves and prevent the home side from seeing so much of the ball. George Howard made a good break down the middle of the park after some expert counter rucking from the Hudson twins. Another dominant scrum from the Bury pack led to nice handling along the backline and James Walshe forced a penalty on the right-hand wing, but Colchester were counter-attacking swiftly whenever they got a chance. Harry Wooldridge put in a succession of big textbook tackles and the game was very much in the balance.

Some brilliant defensive work from Bury held Colchester up as they threatened to score, great tackling from Charlie Burrows, Ben Hewett and Will Hudson in particular, but eventually the mounting pressure told and the home team crashed over. The score was converted and the lead was 19-14. Bury responded with some well worked phases, but another penalty was conceded for apparent holding on at the ruck and the chance was lost. Despite almost complete dominance at the scrummage resulting in apparent last resort wheeling by the home side, the only penalties being awarded were seemingly against the Bury side. Frustration was growing and some chances that would normally have been taken slipped through their fingers. Another penalty for more holding on at the breakdown was awarded to Colchester and the extra points were taken in front of the posts. Bury were now more than one score behind with time running out.

Colchester were showing superior handling skills on the day but Bury stuck to their task and both Tom Dye and Vincent La Starza made good ground down the park when they gained possession. In a fairly evenly contested match the penalty count against Bury was partly responsible for killing any attempts at them building momentum, but Billy Reid made one of his trademark breaks down the right wing and Bury were applying pressure again. Another solid scrum saw Bury spread the ball wide and James Walshe was only denied by a last-ditch covering tackle. Back stormed the home side and Ali Evans produced the tackle of the day by stopping the full pace Colchester full back in his tracks. However, some of the attacking lines and passing skills on show from the home side were very impressive, and after another period of sustained attacking some quick hands resulted in a score in the left-hand corner to take the lead out to 27-14.

With only five minutes left on the clock Bury attacked with everything they had left, some good breaks from Nico Marchini and Harry Wooldridge, but it was not to be their day. Congratulations to Colchester who turned in a fine performance that would have beaten most teams with some exceptional handling, and well done to a strong Bury side who, despite not being at their best on the day, played a full part in an absorbing contest. The Bury captain, Vincent La Starza, showed that his side were already determined to right the wrongs of today when saying: “Unfortunately we didn’t come back with the win we wanted, but I know that next year will be a different story”.

Reflecting on their close defeat in the Suffolk Plate, the Bury captain Todd Hutchinson said: “I was super proud of the lads and how they conducted themselves, putting in a great shift, keeping our heads when we were behind and staying disciplined when times got tough. We were unlucky not to get the result we wanted”. The last word will go to the Under 16s squad captain Vincent La Starza, who said: “We are very lucky to have the coaches that we have and the support from the families we have, we couldn’t ask for more from a team”.

Very well played this season gentlemen, and indeed right through your youth careers, it has been an honour and a privilege for all of us to be a part of your journeys. Wherever your paths lead, you can be incredibly proud of the way you have played this great game and the skill, application and spirit you have always shown.