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Lewes Ladies vs Southampton Sevens

Lewes Ladies vs Southampton Sevens

Pip Young4 Aug 2016 - 13:35
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A report by Natalie Clements

Our second sevens tournament saw a well rested, excited and confident side take to the grounds of Southampton for an all ladies day of rugby. Drawn in pool 1, Lewes faced some real contenders. All in all, the women’s team played five matches against teams from across the South of England.

Game one saw the ladies drawn against Portsmouth.

After a narrow defeat at Worthing sevens, the ladies knew that this wasn’t going to be an easy match. With clear passion and determination the Lewes Ladies went out full throttle, immediately dominating possession against Portsmouth for the majority of the first half. A few swift moves saw the team utilising the width of the pitch, creating a huge overlap on the right wing. Quick decision making from Katie Wadeson saw her take advantage and burst through Portsmouth’s defensive line to score between the posts: 5-0 to Lewes.

The second half commenced and Lewes started just where they left off. Some great handling skills and perfectly executed moves saw the Lewes side again dominating in Portsmouth’s half. However, the try line eluded them.

In a swift turn of events Portsmouth regained possession and headed towards Lewes’ try line. A couple of well-timed handoffs and Portsmouth had the ball over the line: equalising with seconds to play.

Both teams played exceptionally well for the remainder of the game: holding each other off to make the full time score a draw: Lewes 5 Portsmouth 5.

Game two saw the ladies drawn against the hosts, Southampton.

Lewes and Southampton were equally matched: both playing in parallel leagues. However, it was Lewes who hit the scoreboards first thanks to a magnificent run from Katie Wadeson.

Southampton came right back when a series of moves saw a gap open in Lewes' defence. Putting the ball down behind the line saw Southampton get back in the game. The remainder of the first half saw some fantastic play from both teams however the score line remained the same: 5:5.

The second half began and both teams upped their game. A perfectly timed run on the left wing from Petra Peussa saw Lewes take the lead for the second time in the game. However Lewes' reign soon ended. Lewes conceded two players to injury on the wing after a second spectacular run from Petra and Southampton took full advantage of the overlap to put down two quick tries and a conversion. Lewes managed to come back with a third try but missed the conversion, and missed the draw by two points. Southampton narrowly won the game.

Full Time: Lewes 15 Southampton 17

Game three saw the ladies drawn against Salisbury.

Lewes next took on the newly formed Salisbury team, who had just beaten Southampton in a back-to-back game. The Lewes ladies took to the pitch and it wasn't long before Katie Wadeson was sprinting down the wing and over the try line. Lewes had the lead. A stunned Salisbury could only watch as they struggled to regain ball possession from a strong Lewes side. A second try for Katie and next it was some great foot work from Grace Darling that saw Lewes add to their lead. As the first half came to a close, Sam Williams burst through the defensive line for a half pitch sprint over the try line. A perfectly struck drop kick saw the try converted. Half time score: 26:0

After a quick half time pep talk, the second half resumed with a fired up Lewes squad hungry for a win. However, a few substitutions for Salisbury saw a more confident side and they attacked Lewes' try line for their first score. A second try came from the Salisbury team and the score line became worryingly close to another draw. However the final few minutes saw Mandy Yau breaking through the defence to score her maiden try for Lewes. Final score: Lewes 31 Salisbury 12.

Game four saw the team face Trojans.

The hardest game was saved ‘til last. With their Union side in the Championship South league, Lewes knew that competing against the Trojans was going to be tough. In true Lewes ladies style we went out and fought ‘til the better end. Trojans pulled out all the stops but we held our ground and it wasn't long until we joined them on the scoreboard, courtesy of a very tired Katie Wadeson. A confident Trojans now looked worried! The second half resumed and a refreshed Trojans attacked and dominated Lewes' half for the majority of the final seven minutes. Nonetheless Lewes held their heads high and despite a defeat, walked off the pitch excelling into the plate play off.

Plate Play Off Beckenham

Lewes took to the pitch against a very confident Beckenham side. As it was their last game of the day Lewes welcomed players from both the Portsmouth and Southampton teams to pull on a blue & white shirt and join in on the action. Some quick steps and well executed moves saw Beckenham take the lead as half time approached. A tired Lewes team took to the field to commence the second half. Beckenham, with some fresh feet, resumed their exceptional performance to gain a further lead to win the game.

A massive thanks to everyone at Southampton Ladies Rugby Club for a thoroughly enjoyable day. We look forward to next year’s tournament.

Lewes Ladies are set to play a friendly against Sutton and Epsom at home on the 21st August, with the first league game on the 11th September against New Ash Green.

New players are welcome, with no experience necessary. Training is Thursday's 7-9pm, The Stanley Turner Ground.

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