QUINS Grand Final Delaway Cup Match Report

23/04/2010

Abu Dhabi Quins Women’s Tournament

Abu Dhabi Quins Women’s Tournament

The mercury was pushing 40 and there was barely a breeze to be had as Abu Dhabi welcomed the ladies Sevens teams from around the Gulf for the final tournament of the season. With the Dubai Hurricanes all but having wrapped up the title in the previous tournament there was only pride at stake for second placed Harlequins as they looked to perform in front of their home crowd.

The first game in Abu Dhabi's pool of three (reduced as Kuwait failed to make the long trip) was against Dubai Exiles and the home side started well as Kellyann Davey received the ball under pressure, cut inside three defenders and turned on the gas to beat the cover from 60m out. From then on it was one way traffic as the ladies from the Capital suffocated their opponents with unrelenting pressure. The blitz defense allowed Hilary Gibson to intercept a Dubai pass, the ball came back to Sorell Bootham who found Tiffany Allard to go under the posts. The next two came from Sorell Bootham firstly following a good turnover by Hilary Gibson pouncing on the loose ball and the second came after an excellent blindside break from the scrum by Jenny Matheson. The Final 'Quins score of the half was as beautiful as it was simple. Tiffany Allard stole a Dubai lineout on the 22, Helen Martin straightened the line and Rachel Proops ran the perfect angle to bisect the Exiles' defense and stroll in under the sticks. The second half showcased more excellent Abu Dhabi defense with one passage of play a particular highlight. The Exiles attacked down the left with Laura McMahon and Tiffany Allard both making excellent tackles, Allard recovered the ball, Emma Cox made the early inroads before Jenny Matheson rounded the Exiles' line to sprint fully 80m for the touchdown. Kelly Ann Davey finished the scoring with Abu Dhabi running out winners by 52 - 0.

The final game of the pool was against a strong Toa side who were third in the league overall and had run the top teams close on several occasions. The game was a cagey affair with Abu Dhabi continually making uncharacteristic and unforced errors. This was epitomized when at the very first kick Abu failed to gather. The ball was turned over and despite some good tackling from Rachel Proops and Kellyann Davey Toa kept the ball alive and scored out wide. The daughters of Abu Dhabi responded quickly. Two fantastic tackles in quick succession, the first by Kellyann Davey and the second by Jenny Matheson, gave Abu possession. The ball was recycled and Kellyann Davey picked the gap to go 40m to the line. Abu Dhabi's continued attempts to make dubious passes out of the tackle were losing them the ball on a regular basis and despite total dominance at the scrum by Hilary Gibson, Sorell Bootham and Tiffany Allard, Abu couldn't maintain possession. From one such turnover Toa went blind and their speedster outpaced the defense to score. The second half needed an answer from the Harlequins and it came in the form of Rachel Proops. She made a fantastic break when nothing looked on, found Hilary Gibson supporting and Jenny Matheson applied the Coup de Grace. With the sides locked it was Toa to came back strongest. A break in midfield looked like a certain score before Jenny Matheson's unbelievable tackle hauled a Toa player literally twice her size to the deck. Unfortunately the ball came back Toa side and they once again went into the lead. Abu needed the next score and it was a simple affair with excellent pressure turning Toa ball over, Estelle Uren hit Rachel Proops who in turn found Kellyann Davey to score. The scores again tied Estelle Uren went for the short restart, beautifully gathered by Abu Dhabi it was called back by the Referee for not going the required 10m. The Abu Dhabi supporters howled their derision at the controversial call but to no avail. Toa took the resulting free kick went wide and a Toa player cut a great angle back inside to score, and break Harlequin hearts. Final score 19-24.

Coming second in their pool the ladies from the Capital were denied one last final against their old rivals the Hurricanes but were instead pitted against a good Sharjah team in the 3rd and 4th place playoff. Abu Dhabi started well with Estelle Uren hauling four Sharjah players with her before finding Tiffany Allard in support. Sharjah were caught offside and from the resultant tap Estelle Uren went under their posts. The Abu defense, missing against Toa, once again turned up to the party with Estelle Uren and Emma Cox both making telling interventions. From a good turnover Jenny Matheson found Kellyann Davey on the break. She was hauled down on the half way line but found Estelle Uren who went the final 50m, beautifully ducking under a tackle and firing a pass out to the supporting Laura McMahon who plucked it from high above her head and go over the whitewash. Sharjah came back to start the second half with a good try of their own after a good powerful run which Abu failed to contain. Then came two excellent breaks by Tiffany Allard running fully 50m each time but being hauled down on both occasions just short of the whitewash. The second run resulted in a penalty for the hosts which Jenny Matheson took quickly and scooted in for the try. The game was capped off with some sublime skill from Estelle Uren. She kicked off, re-gathered the ball, and elegantly stepped round three Sharjah players to add the icing on the performance. Final Score 24-7.

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