Report by Darragh Coombes
The Junior Girls Rugby Team took part in a blitz in C.I.T on Wednesday the 9th of October. As they had so many turning out, they were able to form two teams. The Skibbereen Junior B’s were made up of rugby girls from 2nd and 3rd year.
They played their first game of the tournament against Fermoy. Fermoy kicked off and the ball landed in Ciara Dennehy’s hands who took it up at full speed and broke the line of the Fermoy defence, toppling over the line for the first try of the game.
Skibb kick back to Fermoy. Fermoy hit hard and nearly scored only for a heroic tackle from Cayetana McCarthy. Skibb turn over the ball and after going through some phases Ciara broke the line again and scored her second try. Fermoy then hit hard, putting pressure on the Skibbereen defence. However, Skibb held tough and forced a knock by Fermoy. Ruby then picked up the ball and tip-toed her way around the defence and made a dash for the line, scoring Skibbs third try of the match. However, despite Skibbs efforts, the game ended in a draw.
The final score was 15-15.
They played their second game against Skibbereen A, the other team that Skibb sent up. There was a lot of friendly competition here and the game was free flowing. There were a whopping eight scores in the game, Skibb B edging the game 5-3. The game was back and forth and was an absolute thriller. Emma McCarthy scored for Skibb A after some clever play. Then Ruby returns with a try from kick off for Skibb B. Skibb A played the ball out to Abby Kelleher, who used her pace to out-manouvre the B’s defence, scoring a try. The ball landed in Ali O’Shea’s hands who stepped around the defence, scoring for the B’s. Some clever play followed by the A’s, as Kelly burst the defence and slotted home Aisling McCarthy for the fifth try of the game. The B’s came from behind to win by two tries as a world class performance by Ciara Dennehy followed, scoring three tries in quick succession.
The final score was 25-15.
They played their third game against Bantry. Skibb were anxious to keep up their performance from the win against Skibb A. They knew Bantry would be a huge challenge, and Bantry came out all guns blazing. Skibb held firm and a quick counterattack from Orla led to Skibbs first try of the game. Many tries were to come from Skibb. Cayetana drove past the ‘Blue Wall’ of Bantry and scored a try. Natalie Dempsey ran along the wing and scored a sweet try. Then Amy O’Driscoll dodged the defence with some elegant footwork and scored the fourth try for Skibb. Ruby decided to get in on the action, scoring two carbon copy tries, running from kick off straight through the ‘Blue Wall’, sealing the win for Skibb.
The final score was 30-20.
Skibb played their final game of the tournament against Youghal. Skibb were flowing excellently now and looked like a professional team out on the field. Skibb beat Youghal with an absolute try-fest. First Cayetana made a dash up the pitch and touched the ball down across the line. Orla dodged the defence and scored for Skibb. Skibb looked to play it wide but a sneaky pick around the ruck from Cayetana led to her toppling over the line for the third try of the game. Natalie breaks the defence and offloads to Orla who is almost tackled at the line, but a sneaky pass to Ruby led to another try. Ciara Dennehy decides she wants to join and bowls the Youghal defence out of the way and scores another try. There was some amazing teamwork shown in the duration of the tournament, as Ciara slots Natalie a beautiful pass, leading to yet another try. Finally, Natalie picks the ball out the back of the ruck and mauls her way to the line.
The finally score was 35-15.
The coaches were very pleased with the performance of the players during the tournament. The players left proud of what they accomplished and excited for the next time they would step onto a rugby pitch.