Wrenegades 20 : 24 RAF Women
A host of new faces plus a new coach the Wrenegades came so close to securing a win over the RAF but despite a huge effort the clock beat them
Despite upheaval off the field due to refurbishment works at Burnaby Road the six sides from the respective services put on a great display throughout Friday afternoon and evening as Portsmouth welcomed back Inter Services Rugby League to the city.
Great credit must go top Players and Coaching staff for their patience during the day as they coped with the enforced changes to the normal smooth running at RNRL HQ. This upheaval mattered not on the field as three thrilling matches were played on the day, the visitors coming out on top in the Womens and Academy fixtures whilst the RN Brothers took the Seniors match to regain the Dog Watch Trophy.
The last two of the matches were streamed live by Forces News and received a great response literally across the world with 17, 000 views on Facebook and another 8,000 on the Forces News YouTube Channel
RN Wrenegades 20 :24 RAF Women
Second on the bill for the afternoon was the Womens game and it proved to be a cracking game highlighting the quality of the Womens game in the services.
The visitors opened the scoring with a try for Chelsea Greasley following a strong break by Leeds Rhinos player Alex Barnes, the half back finishing the move to the right of the posts, no conversion so it was 0:4 to the RAF. The Wrenegades were not daunted by this setback and replied themselves with a well taken try for Holly Cole on her IS debut. A good break down the RN left seemed to stall but Sam Alderson put up a beauty of a crossfield kick which was missed by the RAF defence, Cole reacting the fastest, chasing down the kick to gather and touch down, great score. After setting up the try Alderson completed with a great conversion near the touchline, 6:4.
The RAF scored next with probably the try of the match, Alex Barnes taking the ball from the base of the scrum 35 metres out to beat the RN defence just managing to touch down in the far-right corner, no conversion, 6:8. That was how the first half ended, great contest with two pretty evenly matched sides, the score reflecting the play.
The see saw scoring continued into the second half with a glorious solo try for RN and UKAF player Josie Parnaby who cut across the RAF midfield leaving the forwards in her wake and forcing herself over for the score 10:8. The RAF then took a hold on the game through the experience of Alex Barnes scoring two solo scores from her own kicks. One of which converted by Katie Adam. Another try for scrum half Greasley converted by Adam seemed to have locked out the home side but coach Matt Baylis’ Wrenegades showed massive resilience as they fought back in the last quarter of the game. Jodie Mills forcing her way over through a tired RAF defence 14:24. A final try for the RN scored by Becky Bowskill brilliantly converted by Sam Alderson rounded off a terrific last 10 minutes for the Wrenegades but despite a surging effort in the dying moments the Refs Whistle denied a famous comeback with the final score 20:24.
Player Of The match RAF Stand Off Kate Allan
Full Match Footage - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cjPkaAGY5w
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