U15 Girls turn up the heat with cup win

It was the Pulborough girls that froze out the visitors from Wimbledon though, rather than the weather, as they put in one of the fastest starts of the season and played some of the best rugby we have seen from the u15s (at least for the first half!)

The first forty minutes was a wonderful display of possession and good handling by Pulborough. Wimbledon just couldn’t get into the game. Despite some crunching tackles coming in from a robust Wimbledon defence, the Piranhas kept their cool and did the job asked of them.

The forwards showed a relentless desire to go forward, with the likes of Tuppence, Ellie and Jess all hammering at the door, sucking in the opposition. Decent enough rucking (still room for improvement…) gave Amy time to calmly distribute, and the Pulborough girls probed around the edges to find the weak spots.

And no one exposed the weak spots more than Carla, who has developed an admirable appetite for straight running.

Hanging out in the back line, Carla neatly disguised her lack of passing by battering forward and making space around her. (If anyone has held a rucking-shield for Carla you will know it is not a comfortable experience).

And so it was that the Wimbledon girls failed to get to grips with her. Cannonball Carla scored three tries in the first half and one in the second. An outstanding performance when combined with her aggressive defensive work.

After one faltering scrum the Pulborough pack pretty much dominated the scrum thereafter, with Rosie doing an outstanding job at hooker, winning against the head a number of times. Ellie consistently impressed, tidying things up at 8, and taking yards out of the Wimbledon defence with her team mates having to scramble to keep up.

With the Borough forwards snagging up some of the stronger Wimbledon girls, the backs were able to test the opposition flanks. The handling in the first half was excellent. Amy, Lauren, Holly and Emily combining usefully through the centre, and Maddie Gee and Lydia keeping the ball in play when pressed on the wing.

It was a matter of when rather than if a try was coming for the backs, and in the end Emily, Lauren and Holly took a try each, often with the neat interplay and support of Maddie.

And while we had most of the possession, the ball had to be won initially each time, which was a testament to the pressure and tackling of the Pulborough girls. Macca had a superb defensive game, as did Emily, Jess, Lauren, Chloe and Pip.

So despite Wimbledon looking bigger (as usual), and skilful and threatening throughout, the guile, grit and skills of the Piranhas meant they went in at half time with a 40 - 0 lead.

And then there was the second half, which frankly deserves a lot less reporting.

Wimbledon gave themselves a good talking to at half time, while the Pulborough girls were sat on a big lead but looking tired after a huge initial effort and now operating with no subs.

Cold hands meant we were now dropping balls, and so Wimbledon were seeing more possession. To make matters worse, Wimbledon restarted with 16 players on the field for the first 10 minutes of the second half (a handicap that we hadn’t agreed to)! So it was perhaps no surprise that they started to edge their way back into the game.

The Wimbledon girls ground down the pitch and spent an age camped in our 22 before finally getting their first try. The Pulborough girls did everything they could to keep it out, defending their line with a ferocity that we had lacked on a couple of occasions earlier in the season. But nevertheless the relentless pressure gave them a score.

What might have looked like a consolation try then turned into a second one, and then a third. But all the time the clock was being used up, with the Borough girls giving nothing away through lack of spirit.

But we wanted to finish well, so with a polite pep talk offered under the posts, the Borough girls went out there to finish the game, which they did with Cannonball Carla taking route 1 for her fourth try, and Lauren successfully converting.

So the girls stay in the cup for a home/away 2 leg final (with Rochford/Thurrock), but should take away further confidence from this game.

Lauren was picked by Wimbledon as their player of the match. Emily and Jess had outstanding performances - their best this season. Macca was great in defence and converted 5 from 6 kicks. And Carla was a real Cannonball - explosive.

But altogether a superb team performance. Well done girls.

Team (tries): Pip, Jess, Tuppers, Lois, Rosie, Jas, Ellie, Macaroni, Carla (4), Amy (c), Lauren(1), Chloe, Holly(1), Maddie, Lydia, Emily(1)