Skipton Roses v Penrith Panthers 10th October.

On Sunday the Panthers Ladies travelled to Skipton Roses for a game against a fellow new side. This would be the Panthers 3rd game as a team and for the Roses it was their 2nd game (their first at home). The Panthers started well, gaining possession from the kick-off and keeping hold of it for the first 5 mins. The Roses then started coming into the game and both sides battled hard with both defences working hard to keep the opposing team out. 15 minutes into the first half the Roses gave away a penalty for a high tackle. Linzi Jenkins was quick on the mark and took the penalty straight away passing to fullback Josie Scrimgour who broke two tackles to score the first try of the game, Helena Scullion added the conversion to give the Panthers a 7-0 lead, the first time they have led in any game so far!
For the next 10 minutes the game went back and forth on the halfway line with both sides trying to put phases of play together. The Roses then started to dominate with their forwards carrying hard, which resulted in them scoring 3 tries in 10 minutes. With two minutes to half time the Panthers had another penalty 10 metres out from the opposition’s try line. Josie took the penalty and crashed over to score her second, leaving the score at halftime 12-15 to the Roses.
After the restart The Roses wasted no time in crossing the Panther’s try line. 8 minutes later the Roses stole a Panthers line out and broke through to score a converted try making the score 12-27. The Roses looked like they were about to run away with the game, but the Panthers regrouped and kept working hard. The Panther’s tackling technique was superb and never mind which player ran at them they all got took down. As the Panthers gained possession, they started moving the ball wide stretching the Rose’s defence, Julia Addison at centre used her experience to draw the defenders towards her, creating a gap for josie to glide through 50m later she crossed the line for her hattrick. Helena adding the conversion. The Panthers moved the ball wide again and Josie was in the right place at the right time to score an impressive fourth try. This made for an exciting finish with 5 minutes still to play the game was anyone’s! The game finally finished 24-27 to the Roses. It was a fantastic game of rugby to watch, and the crowd were definitely entertained. The Panthers are building well as a team and things are starting to click into place, their contact skills are coming on leaps and bounds with their tackling really starting to shine!
Kirsty Yates, Sarah Halliwell, Bea Barnes, Di Hetherington, Emma Adams, Lauren Monaghan, Diane Gibson, Bernie Willets, Amy Wright, Caron Davidson (C), Emma Birkett, Linzi Jenkins, Helena Scullion, Becca Grierson, Ella Purdy, Julia Addison (VC), Hannah Craig, Sarah Kidd, Josie Scrimgour.