IC Women’s Rugby topple UCL

Imperial has gone from strength to strength this year, currently holding the top position in the BUCS South Eastern 2A division and only having dropped one game this season. Despite winning recent games by impressive margins, Imperial approached their final LUSL fixture of the year against the strong and talented UCL with a certain degree of trepidation, knowing it would be the true test of how far they have come. In recent years UCL have ardently beaten Imperial, a point highlighted by their status two BUCS divisions above us, and this certainly made it a fixture we were looking forward to.

Stepping onto the pitch for the warm up, it became apparent that the weather was not going to be on our side. Freezing temperatures and intermittent sleet showers would prove to make catching and passing a challenge but the drive to beat our toughest rivals made us warm enough to step up and begin the match nonetheless. tFrom the kick-off Imperial drove ahead with fierce determination, attacking UCL’s defensive line again and again with our forwards. Eventually, scrum-half Kath Fok took her chance through a break in the line and was rewarded with a try out wide which did much to encourage the team but made for a difficult conversion attempt for hooker Lana Lee.

With 5 points clocked, Imperial faced up to the reset with even greater determination and again pushed hard at UCL’s defence. Several penalties from the rucks gaveImperial the chance to flex their scrum, which held its own and more against the UCL pack. Solid rucking from UCL provided them with a turnover, which was quickly passed down their hands out to the wing where some impressive outrunning of our defence translated into a try out wide. At 5-5, Imperial remained calm and kicked off with a big chase into their 22. When a knock-on from UCL came, Imperial capitalised from their impressive scrum with captain Yasmin Edwards breaking past several defenders to offload to Lucy Olliff for our second try of the match. This time, the score came between the posts and Lana nailed the conversion which would later prove to be crucial. UCL responded quickly with another break on the wing slicing through Imperial’s line to equalise the try count.

Leading 12-10 at half-time, Imperial were anything but cocky about the outcome and so pushed hard for further scores in the second half. In this half Imperial remained dominant, taking the majority of the territory and pushing again and again at the UCL defence. Unfortunately, by this point the cold had worsened causing a flurry of knock-ons from both sides. The resulting scrums worked the forwards hard but impressive hooking from Lana saw us retain our put-ins, as well as several steals which gave us more chances to push for tries. However, UCL appeared rejuvenated by the arrival of their captain and their proper kit, and formed an almost impenetrable wall. Imperial changed tactics, opting for mauls to drive UCL back over their score line but the mass of bodies meant that our break through the line was held up and we were unable to extend our lead.

Frantic play in the last 10 minutes saw UCL possession forcing us back into our own 22. Slow formation of our defensive line almost provided UCL with too many gaps to run through, but Imperial’s determination to hold out at 12-10 manifested in a strong scramble defence that held even when the ball came loose, with full back Wakana Teranka putting the ball over our own line to temporarily keep UCL at bay with a 5m scrum. Time and time again the Imperial line held, with notable cover tackles from Yas, until an interception gave us the turnover just as the whistle blew for full time. The initial reaction was one of disbelief (certain members didn’t even know we were ahead!), soon followed by hysterical joy, exhaustion and then near hypothermia from the cold, but it had all been worth it for our best win of the season. Congratulations specifically to Forwards of the Match, Charlie Stephens and Heather Grant, who were both instrumental in rucks, tackles and breakthroughs, and Back of the Match Lucy Olliff who was always there in support and provided excellent defensive tackles. However, the whole team should be commended for their commitment, with this match demonstrating how much Imperial has improved – bring on next season!