Now the serious stuff starts. The group stage is over and the knockout stages begin. Worcester Under 18 girls having progressed through the Midlands pool 2 group undefeated, moved in to the National Cup regional knock out stage with a game again a strong and also undefeated Mansfield RFC.
Performances in the weeks prior had been hard going with friendly fixtures giving the coaching staff something to think about. Certainly, no stone was left unturned by them. The pre training chat between coaches and players midweek left the players in no uncertain terms where the players had to improve as a team, and how it could be fixed.
Sitting on the outside I wasn’t sure the girls were going to be fully ready for the game in terms of what had been asked in the meeting, but boy did they prove me wrong.
It had been talked about that the girls needed to start the game strong, to push up as a complete unit in defence, to support each and every one of them, to attack the space and use the width.
And from kick off this is just what Worcester did. They got off to a flying start, putting Mansfield under pressure deep in their 22, and claimed an early penalty. An accurate kick to touch set up a lineout on the 5-yard line and following several phases which threatened the try line, Ala went over to start the scoreboard ticking over - the try was converted by Natalie.
Two more tries followed with Chloe B stretching the opposition wide on the right wing, followed by a further try as Ella broke the line and touched down on the right. Worcester continued to apply pressure and were constantly first to the breakdown in numbers, giving Mansfield little space to develop their own game. As Mansfield cleared their lines it was picked up by Nicki who broke a tackle near the half-way line on the left and swept away to touch down under the posts. The wind then took control, and as the kicker swung to strike the ball, it took the ball off the ‘T’. Despite this, Worcester were 22 points up within 25 minutes. Mansfield to their credit didn’t let the score line affect them and they continued to press and cause problems in the Worcester defence. This pressure told with a try just before half time which was converted and left the score 22-7 at half time.
As the girls grew in confidence, so did the speed of play and the speed to the breakdown.
This try before the break had Mansfield’s heads up and they continued mounting pressure on the Worcester defence, however with the girls now working as one, there was no way through, and from pressure in defence causing problems, Worcester’s attack struck again thanks to some great work from the forwards. Ala once again broke their lines to touch down in the left corner. Within minutes of the restart, Bess touched down under the posts for Natalie to convert …….but again Mansfield kept coming and wanted more than just 7 points to show for their efforts…….And if it wasn’t for 2 brilliant try saving tackles Mansfield would have shorted the score to 27-21, but it wasn’t to be, and after 1 try saving tackle Worcester struck again.
Worcester’s scrum had not allowed Mansfield any dominance. Ala picked up from the base of the scrum, and after sucking in their defence released the ball to Natalie, who passed to Bess who ran a good line to split the defence and the release Niamh to sweep round and score to the right of the posts, allowing Natalie to convert. Natalie concluded the dominant display with a converted try of her own.
Increased pressure along the Mansfield try line resulted in a spilled ball, with Ruby just missing out on a diving try as the ball rolled out of reach.
From almost being back in the game, Mansfield were now facing constant pressure from the Worcester girls who were still playing with a buzz, and with the backs clicking, the forwards working as a unit the game was finally taken away from Mansfield with the final score being Worcester Under 18 Girls 48 – Mansfield Under 18 Girls 7.
Thanks goes to Mansfield. You have some brilliant girls and never gave up.
Thanks to the Coaching and first aiders for supporting the girls every week.
Thanks to the Temporary Manager for the day. The team managers had gone AWOL and mentioned something about going away for a birthday…..which was the week before! #tourforfeit
Thank you as well, to Ffion and her mum for the birthday cake!
Thanks to James, AKA snaps for the photos and to James and Ant for their journalistic skills!
Onwards and upwards to the next knockout round on Sunday 10th March, where we believe we play Welwyn Under 18 Girls.
The whole squad should be rightly proud of their teamwork and commitment. The girls were first to the breakdown and the jackal count was high – the backs claiming jackaling rights over the forwards. The coaches all had big grins on their faces as they saw training groundwork coming to fruition.
Everyone is now looking forward to the next round. The future is Worcester!
