Irish Canadian Rugby Club 13 - Toronto Nomads 10
30 / 06 / 05
League

It was a historic night for the Irish Canadian Rugby Club as it fielded it’s first ever women’s junior side on Wednesday night.  Drawing from the success of the Annual Spring Clinic and a very successful recruitment effort, the Junior Women in green were made up of players from 9 different high schools and universities.  Included in the team are five Ontario Juniors and several other players who have already made a big impact with the senior squads.  The team provided the club with a successful debut as they pulled out a nail biter with a 13 – 10 last gasp victory.

With only a few practices together, the Irish forwards fought hard and the backline looked extremely dangerous every time they touched the ball.  Despite facing a Nomads team that included three Canadian Juniors in their pack, the Irish showed enough character to win a very evenly played match.  Irish captain Jess Panzer’s ability to create gaps in the defense allowed the always dangerous Karen Dillane with enough space to beat the Nomads fullback to the corner 15 minutes into the match for the first ever try for the team.  The defense held as a strong Nomads pack pounded their way down the field but was denied every time they looked to score.  The Irish headed into the half with a 5 – 0 lead.

The Nomads tied things up just a few minutes into the second half with an unconverted try by Canadian Junior Kelly Russell, but the Irish quickly moved their way down the field and pinned the Nomads inside their 22.  Constant pressure from the Irish backline eventually saw an overlap develop out wide and Tanya Thompson crossed over the line with the go ahead try.  Irish 10 - Nomads 5.  The Nomads showed great character by marching right down to the Irish goal line and eventually scored what looked to be the game tying score with only 2 minutes to go in the game.  The game was looking like it was headed towards a hard fought draw until the Irish backline once again drove the ball deep into the Nomads half and forced an off-side penalty with no time left on the clock.  Lindsey Bradbury calmly stepped up to the ball and slotted a penalty kick from just outside the 22 for the game winning points and a 13 – 10 victory for the Irish.

“I’m very happy with the intestinal fortitude that these girls played with, considering their age and the small amount of time they’ve had to train together, they really impressed me. We’ve got a ton of talent on this team, but they just need to practice more to put all the pieces together.” Stated an elated back’s coach Karen Lozada (Ferg). “Our backline is a high school coach’s dream! We just need to get a bit tidier ball to take advantage of our pace and creativity a little more.”

“Our forwards hung in there against a very good opponent, but we just need to continue to work on set pieces and be more aggressive at the rucks. Once the whole team is out to training we’ll see a big improvement,” remarked forward coach Mary Velpel.

The next Irish Junior Women’s game is Wednesday, July 6^th at the Markham Rugby Club. Kick-off is at 6:30.