17th Feb 2002 - Beccs Ladies lose out to Thanet Wanderers
It was a double-header this weekend at Sparrow's Den as Beccehamian women's rugby team took on Thanet Wanderers Ladies in the friendly Southern League, whilst half an hour later the men’s teams took to the pitch for the quarter finals of the Kent Cup.
Beccehamian ladies were always going to struggle against the confident National League 3 Kent side. Missing three core team members, Beccs ladies were initially disorganised, fielding a side of just 14 players which gave Thanet an instant edge. However Beccehamians rallied to put up a good fighting display despite going down by 58 un-answered points.
It was the Beccehamians first full match of contested scrums which was a huge learning opportunity for the girls. Struggling in the first few, Beccehamians quickly found their feet with technique visibly improving throughout the match. Thanet were quick off the mark making the most of their one-woman overlap and using their wingers to full advantage.
With some good forward battles taking place, Beccehamian women dug deep and began to use their effective rucking skills. Some fast ball out to the backs enabled some good passages of play, with recycling of the ball going through several phases. However with a player missing, Beccehamians were unable to create enough space to penetrate the Thanet defence and any mistakes were harshly punished.
Going into the second half over twenty points down, Beccehamian ladies showed their fighting spirit with some rallying play which stopped the opposition scoring for a long period. In the last 20 minutes, the higher League side showed their superior fitness level and ran in a number of tries through their wingers. Beccehamian ladies kept their heads held high and played through to the whistle, not giving up for one moment. On paper it was a big loss, in reality a valuable learning experience for the Beccehamians who will take many aspects of the game back to the training field.
In what wasn't the greatest day for Beccehamian Rugby, the men’s team were also knocked out of the Kent Cup by Thanet, 0-53.
[Footnote: In the after match drinking competition, Beccehamians won hands-down (3-0) against Thanet Ladies]
Beccehamian Team
Forwards:
Sam Howe, Gill Horn, Stacie Foster, Sarah Henson, Amy Hooton, Sarah Cobb, Kelly Malynn, Angela Stark
Backs:
Harriet Bold, Louise Thomas (Capt), Shannon Fisher, Charlotte Henry, Lara Fisher, Hannah Tyson
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