The She Devils went into their now customary first game of the half season encounter against ISB almost at full strength, and high on confidence following spy reports that ISB had lost some key players over the summer . However, it never pays to underestimate the fit, organised and aggressive youngsters that make up the monster sized ISB squad and sure enough the game opened in very competitive fashion.
ISB, as always, were fierce in the ruck and tackle but they were clearly uncomfortable with the pressure the She Devils put on. After 2 minutes this pressure almost paid off when Fi Boyle collected the ball on the wing and set of Tazmanian Devils style for the try line, but she was caught just short by an excellent last ditch tackle. A few minutes later, however, the pressure paid off when Naomi ‘Dorothy’ Bridges collected a low (crap) pass from Jeannie Ivanov and drove over for her debut Devils try. Brudget Madell converted and the She Devils were in the driving seat.
The She Devils conceded a series of sloppy penalties in the first half but not one tackle was missed from the resulting taps and ISB became frustrated when they couldn’t get the ball out to their speedy wingers. Great handling from fly half and centre combo Lucy Francis and Bridget Madell put pressure on yet again and when ISB conceded a penalty 5 meters out Jaennie Ivanov drove over for a try that was not pretty but landed the Devils 14-0 up at half time.
More of the same was to follow in the second half, with the Devils superior in every aspect except the ruck, and with their experience telling around the scrum and with ball in hand. Midway through the first half Fiona Boyle put the final nail in the ISB coffin with a typically agressive run-run-run-run-style try, and a third excellent conversion from Madell left the final score 21-0 to the Devils.
Tries: Bridges, Ivanov, Boyle
Conversions: Madell (3)
Player of the match: Maja