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Match Report: HKCC Ladies 10 – 36 USRC Tigers – 15 October, 2016

The HKCC Ladies were feeling hot hot HOT as temperatures soared last Saturday. You could practically see the steam curling up from the fizzling astroturf as Happy Valley baked in the afternoon sun. With another loss under their belts and few subs to offer respite from the impending dehydration, the Ladies demonstrated inspiringly strong determination ahead of the first half against USRC Tigers.

A great starting attack saw the ball heading straight towards the Tigers’ try line just after Kick-off, with a penalty leading to the first lineout won by the Ladies. The Asian communicator – Diana Li – made her comeback in full force, scoring the first try for the Ladies 7 minutes in. No conversion.

The rest of the first half saw each side constantly scrabbling and grabbing for the ball, with the Tigers showcasing their impressive mauling and rucking techniques. Despite some great defensive tackling, the heat got to the Ladies as the Tigers broke through the line scoring their first converted try. Half time 5-7.

A short half time water break saw both teams seeking sanctuary in the little shade that is offered at Happy Valley, and a pep talk from Coach Nesbitt gave the Ladies a second wind – despite the complete lack of it in meteorological terms!

The Tigers though seemed to have benefited most from the break, with one of their wings scoring a try almost immediately from the second half kick-off. Discouraged and slightly dehydrated, the Ladies struggled to keep up their defensive line, and a speedy pair of breakthroughs on the wings saw another two tries for the Tigers.

With the heat and glare from the sun becoming even more intense, both teams were certainly experiencing exhaustion and confusion. A couple of moments saw Tigers tackling players who weren’t even carrying the ball, and the Ladies were remineded to keep their tackles low.

A lack of communication in the defensive line opened up the pitch to the Tigers who scored another pair of tries, one converted (5-36), that almost pushed the Ladies to their limits. As usual, the Ladies fought back in a final push and found their second wind – albeit a little too late in the day.

The Ladies managed to steal the ball and formed an impressive maul, allowing Captain Lynda Nazer to place the ball over the line. A great show of teamwork despite the elements and a disheartening score to fight back against.

HKCC Ladies
Forwards: Nobuko Oda, Wawa Li, Jo Harvey, Katie Rowbottom, Mhairi McLaughlin, Terri Lau, Lauren Petersen, Carolyn Champion, Kikinay Kemp
Backs: Lynda Nazer, Tinley Wong, Diana Li, Josie Jolley, Isobel O’Connor, Allison Mak, Brenda Chan, Elane Lau, Hoiyi Li, Christy Ma, Serene Yee
Tries: Diana Li, Lynda Nazer
Coach: Jeremy Nesbitt

Match Report: HKCC Ladies 7-31 Gai Wu Fawkes – 8 October 2016

After a promising start to the season against the ever strong Valley Reds, the HKCC Ladies were invigorated and ready to welcome Gai Wu to their home ground at Aberdeen last Saturday with their rugby heads on. The atmosphere was buzzing and home support was strong, including HKCC’s newest little supporting member, baby Tahi (prop in training).

The Ladies kicked off to a good start, both sides battling hard to keep possession of the ball. Some good defence from the Ladies saw them gain the ball despite Gai Wu winning the first lineout, however Gai Wu’s fast and low rucking saw them break out to the wing scoring a try 7 minutes in with a successful conversion.

Never fazed, the Ladies pushed on to form a good try line defence following another lineout lost to Gai Wu. Despite HKCC’s best efforts, Gai Wu’s centre popped through the defensive line in true firework fashion to score another try minutes later. Some cheeky behaviour from Gai Wu culminated in the referee issuing a yellow card for a dangerously high tackle.

Good scrummaging saw an energised HKCC win back the ball from Gai Wu following a knock on, a forceful maul from the forwards saw Maddy Witt score HKCC’s first try. Half-time score 12-7 to Gai Wu.

The second half saw some great runs from ‘Kamakazi’ Nobby and HKCC’s newest recruit, outside centre Isobel O’Connor. Endurance and stamina were put to the test as it became obvious that HKCC’s were tired and numerous penalties were awarded to Gai Wu.

HKCC soldiered on with a fierce determination, however slow reactions to a Gai Wu penalty left the defence wide open, allowing the Fawkes t0 score another try. Not willing to admit defeat, HKCC persisted in their attempts to force Gai Wu out of their territory, and despite a last concerted effort, a final maul on the try line saw Gai Wu score their final try with a smooth conversion.

Perhaps the familiarity of the Aberdeen turf put the Ladies in their comfort zone, giving a chance for Gai Wu to show the Ladies their worth.

HKCC Ladies
Forwards: Nobuko Oda, Wawa Li, Jo Harvey, Lauren Petersen, Carolyn Champion, Maddy Witt, Kikinay Kemp, Terri Lau, Kassie Chapel, Mhairi McLaughlin, Kon Chan
Backs: Lynda Nazer, Tinley Wong, Margaret Chan, Josie Jolley, Steph Zhang, Allison Mak, Brenda Chan, Serene Yee, Elane Lau, Christy Ma, Isobel O’Connor
Tries: Maddy Witt
Coach: Martin Kibble

Pre-season: HKCC 20-5 Valley Black @ Happy Valley – 27 September, 2014

For proof that rugby is a hooligan’s game played by ladies of grace and style, flash forward a mere seven hours after Saturday’s face-off between Leighton Asia HKCC Ladies and Valley Black Ladies when the two sides met again, this time in the refined atmosphere of Lan Kwai Fong. Sworn enemies on the field danced up a storm off it, with much silky footwork on display.

In the game itself, Valley started brightly and with serious attacking intent, pinning HKCC Babes back in their own 22, and a try only averted thanks to brilliant last-ditch defending from Brenda Chan at full back. Fast line speed in defense and a couple of offside errors at the breakdown gave the Babes a chance to calm the pace and clear, and this visibly lifted confidence. Consequently, HKCC were soon two tries to the good, the account opened by number 13 Tinley Wong in a delightful break down the left, followed up almost instantly by a barnstorming 40-yard run from player-of-the-game flanker Emily Tuck. In perhaps a first for HK rugby, the two teams agreed not to kick for conversions, given the high risk of a ball being lost in the Happy Valley building works!

Valley stemmed the tide, but found it difficult to recycle their own ball, and had possession stifled by the HKCC pack, who dominated the scrum, finally bringing technique and teamwork together to capitalise on individual skills. Eva Rona in particular, at loose-head, dominated her opposite number, bringing huge pressure to bear on every Valley put-in. Credit here goes to the referee too, who took his time ensuring that both packs, relatively new and with some very inexperienced players, scrimmaged safely and effectively, and that the natural flow of the game was disrupted as little as possible. HKCC hooker, builder Cheryl Gourley, took advantage of one such ‘advantage’ play, diving over from close range towards the end of the first half.

With ten minutes gone in the second half, and the sun mercifully retreating, Valley hit back, good work from their two locks in particular being rewarded with a try in the left corner. But it wasn’t enough to break HKCC’s control of possession, and the game was settled when Serene Yee found a sublime line cutting back inside the park after unselfish and beautifully weighted passes along the whole back line to the right winger.

For HKCC Babes, this game marked the perfect prelude to the season, with parts of their game now visibly coming together, and the error count dramatically reduced on even a few weeks ago. Captain Anna Holmes said, “We’re confident in our plans, now we just have to execute them during the season as we did today. I’m very proud of the progress the whole team has made in stepping up from 10s to 15s this summer”. The first league game is 4^th October versus Scottish; kick off 1800 at Kings Park.

www.hkcc.org

Pre-season: HKCC 0-29 Kowloon @ Shek Kip Mei – 20 September, 2014

The midday sun was the greatest opposition for both teams at Shek Kip Mei on Saturday as Leighton Asia HKCC Ladies faced off against Abacus Kowloon Ladies in the second of three pre-season warm ups before the Women’s 15 Divisions start. ‘Warm’ doesn’t come close to describing the intensity though, in a blisteringly hot encounter during which Kowloon’s more experienced line up (mostly drawn from the league above HKCC), superior attacking skills, and seemingly relentless supply of fresh legs proved too much for the HKCC Babes, resulting in a 29-0 scoreline.

Dig a little deeper though, and the Babes emerge with credit. Three of Kowloon’s tries were scored in an aggressive and dominant first half display which led to uncontested scrums. HKCC’s backline had limited opportunities to show what they could do, and couldn’t take those that did materialise, with some basic decision making errors. In the second half though, and despite the energy-sapping heat, the Babes forced a number of errors and created turnover ball on numerous occasions, coming agonisingly close only for Captain Anna Holmes to be judged held up over the try line. Consistently excellent rucking around the park from Carolyn Champion and the irrepressible Emily Tuck provided a platform for forward momentum which finally swung the game HKCC’s way in the final quarter, but the damage was already done and Kowloon put on the afterburners with a last break to cap a well-deserved victory.

With five debuting players, including Jo Harvey making her first ever 15s appearance (just three months after picking up a ball for the first time) and a new-look backline with Julia Mason and Harriet Jamieson freshly arrived at 10 and 12, HKCC can walk away from the game with lots learned, lots to work on, and welcome reinforcements back from holidays. Stand in Coach Jeremy Nesbitt commented, “despite us having 17 players facing a squad of 30 we forced them to work really hard for their tries. The fact that every player who came off injured put their hand back up to get out there and give it a go again was great to see“. Special credit for this also goes to the great Paul Nazer, patch-up artiste extraordinaire.

If this game is any indication for the rest of the season, it’s going to be a scorcher, so come along next Saturday, 27^th September, for a 6PM kick off against Valley 2s at Happy Valley pitch 8.