Ripon Under 15s v Horden Girls

On a very wet and cold afternoon Horden turned up at full strength, which didn't bode well as Ripon only had 12 available. After a quick discussion between the coaches it was decided that they would play 3 20 minute thirds at 12 a side.
Ripon didn't look great in the warm up but after a team talk in the changing room came out full of fire and more committed to the game, that commitment continued throughout the match.
The first 20 minutes was evenly fought with Horden taking the first try at about 16 minutes into the game, Ripon replied with an equalizer before the end of the third which was quickly followed by a second.
Ripon continued to apply pressure in the second third to take several more tries with strong runs from our backs Caitlin Bate, Maggie Tattersall and Maddie Wright, breaking through the first line of defence and passing out of the tackle. Horden, having swapped out most of their players, just couldn't seem to get past Ripons defence with our wingers Emily Cooper and Lucy Verity putting in tackle after tackle.
Ripon forwards started to dominate the game, taking most scrums against the head and even a rolling maul making 15 metres. This gave our scrum half Amy Wilshal time on the ball to give good service to Olivia Ward who used her options wisely to make line breaks or feed the centres. Ripon forwards were hungry for the ball and dived on any loose balls around the ruck, with Holly Topping, Katie Greensit and Nicole Webster, the front row club, making powerful runs. Alisha Mawer pushing the oppositions forwards onto the back foot allowed Hazel Carling to make a nuisance of herself picking the ball up on the fringes and distributing well.
As the third 20 minutes progressed, Ripon were beginning to feel the effects of all the hard work allowing Horden to score 2 late tries, the final result ending up at 35-15
The girls really stepped up and can without a shadow of a doubt call themselves a team, they played consistently and are heading on the right track to become a side to be reckoned with.
Hordens player of the match went to Olivia Ward for her 3 tries, including one straight from a restart and Coaches player was Lucy Verity for her determination both in attack and defence.