Ripon Bluebelles 17-5 Rotherham Ladies

The weather continued to be unkind to the Ripon Bluebelles this week with persistent rain and very heavy going underfoot but the mood of the team was upbeat as they welcomed back their Captain Dot Frankland after a long layoff due to injury.

The Bluebelles knew with the conditions it wasn't going to be an expansive game and from the kick off kept it tight causing it to be a very physical first 20 minutes for both sides, stuck in the middle of the pitch with both teams giving their all. Ripon started to gain territory ending with Emily Santry picking up from one of the muddy rucks and squeezing over the line. The rest of the first half went in much the same vein with both teams equally matched, a slight lapse of concentration allowed Rotherham to take advantage of an overlap and a miss match in players to score their first try just before the half time whistle blew making it 5-5.

The second half saw Ripon come out strongly with a slight change in tactics, moving the ball away from the ruck, making use of their speed in the back line, they could see that Rotherham were flagging which gave them the opportunity to run with the ball, the conditions made it very difficult to hang on to it, with some promising moves not quite working out as planned. Ripon dug deep and kept the pressure on, Caryl-Ann Davies punishing them in the tackles, blocking them at every turn. This persistent harassment setting a platform for a try by Charlotte Thompson as she pushed through several of Rotherhams defensive line to place the ball under the posts. The conversion taken by Nikki Gill to take Ripon back into the lead at 12-5.

From the restart, Ripon continued to keep the pressure on, pinning Rotherham in their own half, everyone making tackles and showing a commitment to the game that when Emily Santry scored her second try it was most definitely a team effort, being set up beautifully by several phases of play.

Rotherham tried to fight back, passing the ball wide, attempting to run past the main Ripon pack only to be met by massive resistance from the likes of Lou Brennan, Holly Thompson, Hayley WIlliams and Kelly Cunningham to mention a few. Nearing Ripons try line, only to have the ball cleared away by RIpon after a textbook tackle by Dot Frankland who definitely made her presence felt on her return to the game.
The playing conditions continued to take its toll on all the players, who continued to dig deep and frustrations started to show, but the final whistle gave them all a welcome relief with a score of 17-5 to Ripon.

The coaches found it extremely hard to settle on a player of the match but Caryl-Ann Davies stood out in her new position of flanker, she really seemed to relish the role showing a persistence and understanding. The Belles showed a team spirit today that they should all be very proud of, working hard in very trying conditions, a great game to watch.