Rugby season draws to a close for Oban High School girls
Oban High School’s under 14 girls’ rugby team played their final game of the 20/21 season on Wednesday last week for the Bradbury Cup.
This was also the last chance for the girls to say farewell to their senior coaches Poppy McKillop and Isla MacGillivray. Although Isla will continue to work with the squad after summer, Poppy is off to college in Glasgow.
The girls took a moment before kick-off to present Poppy with flowers and a card as a token of their appreciation for her hard work and motivation to grow and improve girls’ rugby at Oban High School.
The game was fast paced and with little competition at the breakdown lots of tries were the order of the day. Some lovely footwork and agility provided the opening try of the day for the Sharks. Numerous tries were exchanged as referee Allan Wright endeavoured to keep up with play. In attack, both teams looked dangerous with A MacQueen, R Gemmell, A MacFarlane-Barrow, N Duncan, T Robinson and C Armour all proving tricky to stop. Great playmaking by J McCann for the Sharks and J Jevons for the Bulls provided many opportunities for both teams. L Gibson, A Logan, C MacAloon and R Carre were carrying out their defensive duties to a high standard throughout the game with some great cover and tackle defence. After extra time, the game ended in a 10-10 draw. This seemed a fitting result to end what has been an explosion of enthusiasm for rugby amongst players at Oban High School.
Kirsty Sinclair, the ladies’ captain of Oban Lorne RFC, presented the Bradbury Cup which was shared on this occasion.
Murray Hamilton, head of physical education, said: ‘I am extremely proud of all the students who take part in sport and represent the school, however, the rugby girls have been outstanding this year.
‘They have committed to getting better and working hard. I love coaching them and seeing them make progress every week. Senior girls like Poppy and Isla have been inspirational and excellent role models to these young players, who love having the seniors coach them. I am really grateful for their commitment and volunteering their time.’ Girls’ rugby training will start back after summer on Wednesday after school on the astro pitch. Any girls interested should see Mr Hamilton in PE. The Girls’ School of Rugby is also running next year and new S1 players are encouraged to apply via the information on the transition Google Classroom or the high school app.
Next season the girls are looking forward to playing in their first away fixture against opposition from the Glasgow North regional district. They will have a tournament in September to kick-start their season.