Storm edge ever closer to victory with highest try tally this season

It was a weekend of epic proportion down at Happy Valley this Saturday. After two immense battles in the men’s game, the stands were well-populated for Storm’s kick-off at 6pm. Sandy Bay RFC had just pulled off a victory in the first round of the Kerry Cup against HKFC and it was all to play for in the women’s side.

HKU Sandy Bay Storm put in a stunning performance, with a scoreline reflective of an evenly-fought match, many times with Storm out on top. Quick play by Eve Caplowe at scrum half and an early try in the first half from Olivia Wilcockson at no 7 put Storm ahead and in the driving seat.

Storm made ground with every ball. An experienced forward pack put in strong drives – notably Adrienne Theron (Forward of the Match) Keri Roberson and Katie Rowbottom who moved the team up the pitch at pace; and there was excellent play in the backs to get the ball out wide. U19s Lucia Bolton (Back of the Match) and Alysha Tarr played some rapid balls down the line, meriting every bit their places on the Storm team.

This was a game that demonstrated all aspects of Storm’s training and you could clearly see the team coming together as one.

At the half-time whistle, Storm found themselves down by five points and came back fighting harder than ever. A try by Joanna Harries in the corner, despite being a player down (yellow card – Lauren Petersen) led to jubilation in the stands and sidelines. In the final quarter, yet again one try down to HKFC, Storm’s Joanna Harries and Genevieve Simmons made phenomenal ground, dodging the opposition’s advances for Simmons to score the equalizer at 63’.

As the final whistle came closer, it really could have been anyone’s game. Once again, quick hands in the back opened up chances for Lucia Bolton, Joanna Harries and Eve Caplowe but it wasn’t quite enough to take the game. A fiery HKFC made one last big effort, leaving the score at 20-15 to the home side.

Harriet Jamieson, Sandy Bay Storm Captain, summed up the match:

“We should be proud of our performance today. We were fierce, we made ground with every ball, and we got it out wide. We didn’t win today, so we can only do better!”