First Win of the 2011-12 Season for the Royal Navy Women
On 19 Oct 11, the RN Women travelled to Paignton for their first fixture of the season. The Squad had been training at BRNC Dartmouth in preparation for the match and included a number of new faces, all of whom integrated well into the team. For the new Captain, Lt (Charlotte) Fredrickson (849 NAS), it was her first game in charge and she performed her new role to a very high standard, ensuring that the Ladies were focussed and motivated for the game.
The match commenced with Paignton kicking off to the RN. The RN secured the ball and within 3 minutes, Logs (Lauren) Morton (CMC-Portsmouth) burst through the Paignton defence and ran from halfway to score the first try of the game between the posts. AB (Sam) Alderson (HMS Scott) kicked the conversion (0-7). Paignton came back strongly forcing the RN to give away a penalty in their 22m. The Paignton fullback stepped up to kick for the posts, however, the ball swung wide. From the 22m drop out, Paignton secured the ball, however, some strong RN rucking meant that NA (Caroline) Penrose (RNSFDO) was able to steal the ball.
The next period of play saw the RN dominate in both the forwards and backs. LPT (Isabel) Molyneux-Jacob (BRNC) made a good run at the Paignton defence which was backed up with an offload to Fredrickson. There was some strong ball carrying by Lt (Paula) Bennett-Smith which allowed fly half LET (WE) (Sarah) Jenkins to break through the opposition line. From within their 22m, Paignton cleared the ball with a long kick which was caught by NA (Shona) Barnes (848 NAS). Following a RN scrum, the ball was passed out to the backs to outside centre AB (Bonnie) White. A high tackle as she carried the ball over the try line, led to the Referee awarding the RN a penalty try. Again, Alderson converted the try (0-14).
The remainder of the half saw some ill discipline from the RN, who gave away a number of penalties for being offside at the breakdowns. However, on the plus side, there was some good tackling and rucking by all. At halftime, the score remained the same.
The second half saw the RN started strongly. Jenkins showed a great turn of pace, sprinting through the Paignton defence on a number of occasions. When pressurised by Paignton, the RN defence stood up well, with Morton putting in some key tackles.
From a Paignton scrum, it was Morton who managed to steal the ball and made a darting run at the Paignton defence. She passed the ball inside to Jenkins who scored the third RN try of the game, which was converted by Alderson (0-21).
The restart saw Paignton apply more pressure to the RN and again the RN gave away a number of penalties. Fortunately, the RN defence remained solid and managed to win a scrum 5m from their try line. Alderson gave a fantastic clearance kick that reached halfway to reduce the pressure on the RN defence. LAC (Emily) Park (815 NAS) put in some good tackles to stop Paignton gaining any ground.
Unfortunately, around mid-way through the second half, there was a serious injury to a member of the Paignton team which required an Ambulance to be called. On behalf of the RN (Women), we would like to wish Kaitlin a speedy recovery.
The decision was made to restart the match and play the final 10 minutes. Paignton immediately applied pressure to the RN defence and from a 5m scrum were able to score their first try of the game. The try was not converted (5-21)
With moments remaining on the clock, the RN managed to battle their way up the field into the Paignton 22m. From a RN scrum, Fredrickson made break through the defence. The ball was passed along the line and only a last ditch Paignton tackle prevented NA (Shona) Barnes (848 NAS) from scoring in the corner. The match finished 5- 21to the RN (Women).
The man of the match was awarded to Logs (Lauren) Morton, who performed incredibly well. She played with confidence, controlling the forwards well in both attack and defence as well as making some key tackles and breaks in attack.
The next RN (Women) fixture will be against Plymouth Albion on 23 Nov 11.
Team List:
AET (Becky) Sharp (HMS Sultan), LAC (Emily) Park (815 NAS), NA (Ella) McKenzie (820 NAS), NA (Caroline) Penrose (RNSFDO), LT (Paula) Bennett-Smith (Northwood), LT (Charlotte) Fredrickson (Capt) (849 NAS), LAWT (Emma) Swinton (HMS Dragon), LT (Helen) Leach (HMS Seahawk), Logs (Lauren) Morton (CMC-Portsmouth),LET(WE) (Sarah) Jenkins (HMS Richmond), LPT (Isabel) Molyneux-Jacob (BRNC Dartmouth), LComms (Hannah) Woodhouse (HMS Collingwood), AB (Bonnie) White (HMS Heron), NA (Shona) Barnes (848 NAS), AV (Sam) Alderson (HMS Scott)