In horrendous conditions, the game didn’t have the most auspicious start with a knock on from DMP.
The Richmond scrum looked particularly strong, with Chloe Edwards making her debut at tighthead prop. This led to a strong period of play from the home team however they were unable to take any points from it.
The game continued at pace with both sides having opportunities to score. Katy McLean was a constant threat with tactical kicks into the Richmond half however fullback Oli Davies and winger Rebecca Ball gathered up the ball on each occasion before the DMP wingers could get there although Ruth Laybourn looked back to her best with several strong runs.
It wasn’t until 25 minutes in that we saw a score. Richmond used their power at the scrum to allow
Becky Essex to cross the line. 5-0.
Richmond continued to pressure up to halftime with Oli Davies scoring in the corner before captain
Emma Croker scored on halftime. 15-0.
With their 2nd team game cancelled, Richmond had a fresh set of shirts to put on during the break however it didn’t help the play with DMP’s birthday girl Ruth Nash scoring soon after the restart. McLean converted with ease. 15-7.
While the rain had stopped, the ground conditions meant that this was never going to be a classic
match. The fast-paced running rugby that both coaches favour was not the style for the day and we
saw no more scoring before the final whistle however the watching crowd were treated to a tight
contest between 2 very competitive sides.
