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Cheltenham Ladies 35 – 12 Worcester 2nds
Cheltenham Ladies earned a well fought victory over a young Worcester side in
National Division 1. A poor 1st half saw the Worcester scrum struggling to
settle causing disruption to the flow of the match but Cheltenham scored first
with a try by Briege Williams. Worcester later hit back and grabbed a try as a
result of some poor Cheltenham defence. The second half saw the Cheltenham
forwards dominating both the scrums and line outs with the Cheltenham Number 8
Kath Dean making some storming runs from the back of the scrum. This domination
allowed the trys to start flowing with a brace each for Claire Mustoe and Tammy
Shakespeare and a try apiece for Steph Carylon and Angie Sells. Worcester scored
a second try but the damage had already been done.
Loughborough 12 – 29 Cheltenham Ladies
Cheltenham secured a hard fought win against Loughborough to cement second
place in National Division 1. A very scrappy 1st half saw Cheltenham struggling
to find shape and form. Fullback Briege Williams ran around the Loughborough
defence to score the first try, which was quickly equalized by the opposition.
The Cheltenham pack pressurized the opposition on their own try line which
resulted in prop Catherine“Stella”Beck grounding the ball for her first try for
her club. Loughborough hit back with a try after half time but stability in the
lines outs and strong running from all the forwards saw Cheltenham secure good
ball for the backs to work with. Williams scored 2 more trys but Loughborough
tempers flared which resulted in their Hooker being sent to the sin bin for foul
play. Quick pace saw Claire Mustoe into the corner for the final try of the
match. The team would like to thank all the supporters who travelled up to watch
the game.
Camphill Ladies 22 – 17 Cheltenham Ladies
The final match of the season saw a narrow loss for Cheltenham against league
leaders Camphill.
For the first 20 minutes Cheltenham defended their try line vigorously against
huge pressure from Camphill before a fumble at the base of the scrum by
Cheltenham saw the opposition flanker scoop up the ball to score and convert a
try. Cheltenham won 2 balls against the head in the scrum which enabled Briege
Williams to run down the blindside wing to score. Camphill scored again when a
kick over the top found Cheltenham out of place and their fullback ran in to
score. Cheltenham responded with a good period of pressure play, which resulted
in a second try for Williams, converted by Lauren Williams, to level the score
before half time.
The second half was fairly scrappy with some basic handling errors from both
sides. Cheltenham edged ahead when some combined handling from the forwards and
backs put winger Hazell clear for a strong run to the try line. Despite strong
defensive work again from Cheltenham, Camphill went ahead with 2 unanswered
tries and although Cheltenham pressurised the opposition try line for the last
10 minutes, a win eluded them.
South-west 7,s tournament
Final-Avon Ladies 21-26 Cheltenham Ladies
Cheltenham became South-west 7's champions after a dramatic final win over Avon
Ladies. Cheltenham cruised through the pool stages winning all their matches
with great performances from Sue Burnham, Rachel King and the rest of the squad.
The final started very badly for Cheltenham who lost all previous form and let
in 3 converted tries from a confident Avon team. At 21-0 down at half time
Cheltenham were left with a hard slog in front of them.
A talk with coach Rodger Long got the girls switched on and they came back to
level 21-21 by 2 tries from Briege Williams and 1 from Claire Mustoe all
converted by Maz Claassens. The atmosphere was tense and with 30 seconds left on
the clock Lauren Williams and Tammy Shakespeare managed to win the ball
from kick off and a good delivery by Lisa Jenkins saw Williams score her 3rd try of the
game.
The referee played on for another 2 minutes giving Avon every chance to score,
however try saving tackles from Shakespeare and Angela Sells ensured
Cheltenham's success after an electrifying match!
Squad: Claire Mustoe, Tammy Shakespeare, Briege Williams, Lauren Williams, Maz
Claassens, Angela Sells, Lisa Jenkins, Sue Burnham, Rachel King.
National 7’s Plate Winners
The bank holiday saw Cheltenham Ladies enter into the Women’s National 7’s
competition along with 32 other teams from all over the country. Cheltenham came
2nd in their pool after a loss to Premiership side Richmond and a win over
Fullarians. . This placement saw them go through to the Plate stage of the
competition with the upper teams going to the Cup and the lower teams through to
the Bowl and Shield. Cheltenham faced Loughborough Old Girls in the
quarterfinals and beat them comfortably 26 – 5 with a try each for Angie Sells,
Maz Claassens, Briege Williams and Claire Mustoe and 3 conversions from
Claassens. Cheltenham came up against Waterloo in the semi-final, which they won
easily 33-0 with strong runs from Lauren Williams and Kath Dean and solid
defence from Steph Carylon. Tries were scored by Tammy Shakespeare, Sells, B
Williams, Mustoe and Claassens with 3 conversions by Claassens and 1 by Carylon.
Cheltenham once again faced Avon Ladies in the Final of the competition. The
defence on both sides was very tight, with Avon quick to close down any
attacking runs made by the backs, but this opened up other areas of the field,
which was exploited by Shakespeare to score a try. Strong scrummaging by Dean
and good defensive work saw the majority of the possession belonging to
Cheltenham and it wasn’t long before Shakespeare scored again, converted by
Carylon to win the final 12-0.
Coach: Roger Long
Squad: Claire Mustoe, Tammy Shakespeare, Angela Sells, Lisa Jenkins, Kath Dean,
Lauren Williams, Briege Williams, Maz Claassens, Steph Carylon, Laura Hale
Cheltenham Ladies 39 - 12 Supermarine Ladies
Cheltenham prepared for the season ahead with a warm-up-game against Supermarine.
It was a tough introduction as the opposition had a strong pack but Cheltenhams
faster paced game and good team work combined to secure a win. 2 tries were
scored by Briege Williams, with Lauren Williams, Angie Sells, Claire Mustoe,
Laura Hale and Sarah all scoring a try apiece. Maz Claassans and B Mocellin each
scored a conversion.
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