Imperial, Away (5-31 loss)

Faithful media sec was unavailable on Sunday, so the match report is brought to you by Cap'n of SS KCLWRFC.

The excitement of the adventure on the tube which became an overground to Imperial’s pitches near Heathrow was matched by that of actually watching the game (Captain currently out with knee injury, like 30% of our team). We were playing a team from the league above with many of the old girls not to be seen on the pitch due to injuries, which really allowed the freshers to show off what they’ve learnt.
The Imperial girls showed speed and power at the break-downs as well as great support and phase play. However, our new set-up in defence meant we were stronger than previous matches, with line breaks often being neutralised by our sweepers.
Imperial used a quick penalty into their advantage and scored the first try of the match. Their second came soon after with a cheeky chip and chase from their scrum-half.
Two scores down towards the end of the first half we were fighting hard. After not managing to score from two penalties on the 5m line it was third time lucky for the King’s girls, when a quick penalty saw Helen powering through and placing the ball over the line for our first try of the match.
Our lack of fitness showed and defence began to tire in the second half, and the next few imperial tries came from textbook forwards phase play before crashing straight through our line.

However, we can do the same! Several forwards phases followed by excellent back line play saw Emma P make metres down the wing but the defence made sure she crossed the touch line instead of the try line. More forwards play saw us again on their try-line but a turn over in the ruck resulted in Imperial clearing the ball back over our heads. Another surge and we were back on the 5m line, where Tara managed to take the ball and smash over the line but was held up.
The final score of the game came from another cheeky chip and chase by the Imperial scrum-half before an offload to their full-back to finish the job right under the posts.
Both teams were powerful and determined, but ultimately the game was decided by better organisation and quicker play from the Imperial girls, especially in the rapid decision making of their scrum-half captain.
Special thanks to Imperial for the chip butties afterwards!

Match report by Lynn, photos by Amy C.

Tries: Helen (1)
Oppo Player of the Match: Maighread (nom. Philippa)
Forward of the Match: Ally
Back of the Match: Maighread
Dick of the day: Becky (really an extra back of the match)
KCLWRFC is proudly sponsored by KPMG.