Rusty Panthers still win well

Ladies Rugby:

Pembroke Panthers 44 Tumble Ladies 22

Tumble kicked off with a strong wind at their backs and following a good chase applied pressure to Pembroke Panthers and kept them pinned in our 22 and after a strong period of pressure they scored the opening try, which went unconverted.

From the restart a long period of pressure by Pembroke led to a try for Isabelle Dufresnoy to level matters

Isobel grabs try hat-trick

Jenny Tanner made a strong run from the kick off, covering half the pitch, but support was slow in arriving leading to a penalty at the breakdown to Tumble, who gained good yardage through a series of strong forward carries, before a turnover led to a moment of outrageous skill by Lucy Neale with a magnificent kick and chase. The ball was regained and a strong surges by the Pembroke players threatened the Tumble line. A yellow card was issued to one of the Tumble forwards for tackling a player by the hair and  almost immediately Isabelle Dufresnoy powered over for her 2nd try.

Another strong run by Isabelle Dufresnoy set up Lauren Morgan for a try which she converted and more strong runs by Lauren Morgan and Kirsty Fisher set the scene for Isabelle Dufresnoy to score her hat trick.

A 60m break by Charlotte Lloyd-Bird looked like a certain try, but a tremendous covering tackle did enough to prevent it. Close range penalties saw scrum half Gail John going close to crossing the try line three times in quick succession, finally getting a try awarded on the third attempt to give Pembroke a 27-5 interval lead.

Points galore in bright second half

The second half continued in the same way with Chloe Beynon looking threatening and finally finding her way to the try line before Tumble had a period of pressure and through hard work earned two tries in a spell that showed they had come to play rugby.

After Pembroke had dominated possession the ball found its way to Jenny Tanner to score and more good play by Pembroke in using the elements and kicking well lead to a try for Lauren Morgan which she converted.

The final word went to Tumble who scored a good try to finish this entertaining match .

Coach Rob Griffiths’ verdict:

"We were rusty at the start and showed that we hadn't played since December and with players out of position, but once we got going the girls showed some quality work in defence and attack. It was pleasing to see our scrum pushing them off their own ball and Leanne Panton disrupting and stealing their lineout. I was also impressed by our backline finding open spaces for some impressive running."