14 May 2008
Contributed by ANat
The Introduction to Contact Rugby Carnival for Girls 2008 saw eight teams slug it out at the Yio Chu Kang Stadium on Saturday.
With four of the eight teams having only started training in contact rugby in April, there was plenty to play for as the new teams competed for the first time at a game none of them have ever known. For the players in Blacks A, Singapore Recreation Club (SRC), Republic Polytechnic (RP) and Bukit Batok Secondary School (BBSS), it was their second time participating in the carnival and a chance to showcase to the crowd their development over the year. They did not disappoint as they gave the crowd plenty to cheer about with their dedication and thrilling breaks. The other 4 teams making their debut in the carnival were no easy pushovers each team played their hearts out.
Blacks A cruised through their pool conceding no tries in their first three games. Bucks held on to the second place in Pool A with two steady wins against National Junior College (NJC) and the Institute of Technical Education (ITE). ITE got off to a slow start and let Bucks clinch their pool game 10 -5 before recovering to take NJC 20 -0. NJC put up a good fight against Blacks A and but for an error in judgment of the try area would have snuck in a late try against ITE.
Over in Pool B, RP gave had a strong run against SRC but lost out the top spot in the pool by just one try. RP was able to penetrate SRC defence after 10 phases of play to score their well deserved try. The small but feisty girls from BBSS showed their mettle with their brave tackles on their bigger opposition. They came in from behind to score 2 tries in the game against Blacks B to secure a berth in the Bowl semi finals.
With the group stages completed, the Bowl semi finals saw ITE taking on Blacks B and BBSS taking on NJC. ITE was able to break through Blacks B defence by moving the ball across the field and catching the defenders flat footed. Likewise, BBSS was able to exploit the gaps at the wings to score 2 tries against NJC. In winning their semi finals, BBSS and ITE advanced to the Bowl finals while Blacks B and NJC would meet in the Shield Finals.
The Cup semi finals saw Blacks A meeting RP in a closely fought match and SRC meeting Bucks. The Bucks girls had by far the better tackling techniques of the tournament but indiscipline at the breakdown area saw them give away several penalties against the more experienced SRC girls. Blacks A and SRC emerged victorious in their games and advanced to the Cup Finals whilst RP and Bucks advanced to the Plate finals.
The Shield Final saw Blacks B against NJC. NJC exploited the short gaps off a scrum and scored 2 tries against Blacks B. Blacks B kept their heads up and broke the NJC defence from halfway to score a try in response. Both teams were able to keep the opposition from scoring further and NJC emerged Shield Champions.
The Bowl Final saw ITE meet BBSS. The BBSS girls were able to hold up stellar defence against the bigger ITE girls to the admiration of the crowd. ITE managed to put in 2 tries and BBSS responded with a last minute try of their own at the wing however this was not enough for BBSS and ITE was crowned Bowl champions.
RP and Bucks met in the Plate Final and this was a hard fought match with both teams charged up to take the Plate. There was plenty of broken play with both sides managing to halt several of the opposition’s breaks which resulted in a scoreless half-time but RP emerged the winner of the battle by scoring two tries to secure the title of Plate Champions.
In the Cup final, Blacks A met SRC. Blacks A loose defence allowed SRC to put in 2 tries in the first half. Blacks A responded with a try early in the second half but this was not enough as SRC punished Blacks A’s defence again to seal the win 15-5 with a final try.
It was a fantastic day for women's rugby as the supporters and spectators witnessed the commitment and enthusiasm of the teams. Those who have just picked up the sport can expect to learn more with the XV coaching clinic on 17 May and the NRC XV lined up in June.
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