Trailfinders v Leicester Tigers
PWR – Round 17
A quite astonishing game, forget about the final score for a moment.
A bounce pass from Amy Relf put Tigers under immediate pressure. They conceded a turnover and a penalty in front. Trailfinders went for the corner, but knocked on. Tigers won scrum ball but were driven on to their own line again. The next scrum saw Kate Zackary guide the ball forward, then dive on it as the Tigers’ pack crumbled. 5-0
Tigers got their game together, led by their enterprising backs, Meg Jones a constant danger. A faulty TF pass, and Jones was skipping into the 22. TF were saved by a following knock-on, but the need for accuracy was evident. And the penalty count was building against them.
Abi Burton twice hurt a hand, and it was a pass of hers that didn’t find its target. TF didn’t want to see her depart this early, but she needed courage to continue, a virtue she well knows.
Tigers were looking thoroughly dangerous; only strong defence held them out.
There was concern as Charlotte Fray lay prostrate. Fortunately, after a lengthy break she was able to leave the field unaided, buit it was a big loss for the visitors. On resumption, yet another TF penalty led to a rapid score from Talia Brody. 5-7
For the next few minutes the ball screamed for mercy; it was being flung and kicked about all over the field. Tigers again penetrated home defences; it needed a Rollie tackle on fellow-Scot McGhie to prevent another score.
The next try came to TF. From a 5-metre scrum, the ball whipped out to Jess Cooksey, and she was over. 12-7
But the penalties went on mounting; even a 10-metre march back. What gets into teams when they can’t stop offending?
Yet more magic from Jones. She found an invisible gap in the defences, shot through and gave a scoring pass to Francesca McGhie. Claire Gallagher converted from near the edge. 12-14
On the half-hour a lovely move from a midfield scrum saw Liz Musgrove sweep over untouched on the left. 17-14
Jones tried a different trick this time. She stabbed a little grubber over the try-line and was first to touch it down. 17-19
On 40 minutes Tigers won another penalty; the upshot this time a penalty try. Gwala deemed the faulty party.Talk about self-inflicted wounds!
Half time: Trailfinders 17 Tigers 26
Jones was in action at once, chipping into space and collecting. Tahlia Brody was allowed to wander past three tackles and stroll in under the posts. 17-33
Suddenly TF won two penalties on the trot.
Result: try to Musgrave. 22-33.
But this was looking like Tigers’ day. A fine kick-pass by Gallagher landed safely in McGhie’s hands on the right, and she sped to the posts. 22-38
That was ten tries in under 50 minutes. Defence coaches tearing their hair out.
Now Jones found McGhie with an aerial pass, but somehow Grace Moore got back to stop her. The next moment Jones shimmied, fed McGhie and she was in again. With play of this quality you had to wonder how Tigers weren’t competing at the top of the table. 22-45
At last TF put a move together, but the moment they reached 5 metres out Craig Maxwell-Keys found room for another penalty.
Chloe Rollie leapt in the air to field a Gallagher kick; Meg Jones hit her and she was briefly injured. A penalty was awarded, not a yellow or a red.
As Tigers went into slo-mo, the penalties kept on racking up against TF. Tigers tried a trick drop- out on their line, but TF gained the ball and Lisa Thomson drove over. 29-45
Now the game grew even more improbable. From Tigers’ possession Julia Schell intercepted and ran the length. 36-45
It was Tigers’ turn to offend unwisely. TF were running hot now, and Rosie Inman was on the end of a fine break. 43-45, with under two minutes on the unofficial clock. We had to hope Craig Maxwell-Keys’ watches were in good working order; he had been bowled over in the rampage.
As 80 minutes showed, Tigers lost their line-out throw; TF attacked to invade the 22, but Caity Mattinson couldn’t hold Zackary’s pass.
Twice Tigers ran the ball out of defence, then presumably they got the nod and kicked the ball out.
Thus ended one of the most extraordinary games PWR has hosted, a confidnce-boosting away win for Tigers. 88 points and a margin of two.
Result: Trailfinders 43 Tigers 45
Teams:
Trailfinders
15 Rollie 14 Laflin 13 Cooksey 12 Thomson 11 Musgrove 10 Schell 9 Amory 1 Leatherman 2 Gwala 3 Wood 4 Beukeboom 5 Moore 6 Burnfield 7 Burton 8 Zackary (captain)
16 Stathopoulos 17 Tamai 18 Tuffnail 19 Pinnock 20 Seye 21 Mattinson 22 Inman 23 White
Tigers
15 Gallagher 14 Henrich 13 M. Jones 12 Wills 11 McGhie 10 N. Jones 9 Relf 1 Bartlett 2 Simpson 3 Benavent 4 Donaldson 5 Fray 6 McBrien (captain) 7 Childs 8 Brody
16 Russell 17 Smith 18 Vincent 19 Omokhuale 20 Richardson 21 Maxwell 22 Feury 23 Sagapolu Sanele
Afterthoughts
There are now strange people appointed called “No 4” on the officials’ list. They presumably are an answer to my complaint about the presence of TMOs at one match in four only. But they don’t seem to have the same right of intervention.
Just for the record, Meg Jones played 13, but took charge of penalty kicks to touch, and acted as a supplementary flanker and general chorus-leader and town-planner; an astonishing virtuoso performance.
