Super U-16 side up for the challenge
WICKLOW PORTLAOISE 31 19
THE Wicklow under-16 girls picked up the club’s second trophy of the day in a strong team display despite a late three-try flourish by Portlaoise.
The under-16s were the second group of Wicklow girls to tackle a Leinster final on Sunday afternoon.
From the first whistle it was clear the girls were ready for the challenge.
Unlike the under-14s, these girls relied more on their forwards, especially Aoife Nixon, Tara Kelly and Jess Reynolds.
The whole forward pack work rate was exceptional throughout, this contributed to the opening try as Nixon got over the line. Robyn Johnson converted the score.
Wicklow would dominate 90 per cent of the possession in the first half as they looked very comfortable around the rucks and keeping the ball, making it very difficult for their opponents to create anything in the first half.
Wicklow co-captain Roisin Stone got a score of her own stretching the Wicklow lead to 12-0 before the first quarter of the game was played.
The first half continued to be controlled by the Wicklow girls as they kept building up the phases, starving the Laois girls of the ball and it wasn’t long before they scored another try, scrum-half Maya Gaynor got their third try of the half extending the lead to 19-0 following the conversion by Johnson.
The Wicklow management would have been delighted with their girl’s performance as they kept Portlaoise scoreless.
Captain Jess Griffey was making some big tackles. They had a 19-0 well deserved lead at the break.
In the second half, we saw more of the ability possessed in the backline as the hard work from the forward paved the way for centres Stone and Ciara Short to make breaks exploiting the gaps in defence.
The ball was being shifted into the wider channels as backs Short and winger Aimee Smit got tries of their own.
There’s no doubt that the Wicklow girls were exceling in all areas of the field for the best part of 50 minutes in a great team performance from all fifteen girls, although credit to the Laois team they showed how dangerous and good they can be by scoring three tries in the final ten minutes.
The Portlaoise back three began to tear through the Wicklow defence for the first time in the fixture as they punished them from broken attack.
Despite this late three try flourish the Wicklow under-16s team were too strong for their opponents and their very strong fifty-minute performance made them worthy winners of the second cup final of the day.