Another Good Performance and Win

their normal positions.

The Wasps opened the scoring after seven minutes. Second row Samara Thomlinson, made a powerful run, but appeared to ground the ball just before the try line, and the try was not awarded. It made little difference as the ball was recycled and moved right, where centre Hayley Hodgson burst through to score. 5v0.

The Sunderland coach, already unhappy about the build up to the first try, had more (justified) cause for complaint as from the kick off a Wasps player seemed to fail to gather the kick cleanly and nudge the ball forward. The referee thought otherwise, and Kendal played on, with Kerry Stevens making a good run, and Hayley Hodgson again finished off for her second try. 10v0

The Wasps then seemed to get on the wrong side of the referee, and conceded a string of penalties for dangerous tackles, and offences at the breakdown. The gap was finally reduced when the referee awarded Sunderland a Penalty try, which was converted. 10v7. Too far away to have any idea what it was awarded for, but in the view of the Sunderland coach, on the spot having had to take over as touch judge, due to an early injury to one of his team, meaning the touch judge was require as a replacement, “Never a Penalty Try”.

Several times Sunderland put long kicks through, but Shannon Barnes (19) playing fullback, dealt very well with them, gathering the ball and running it back

Kendal restored their lead ten minutes later with a third Hayley Hodgson try, 15v7, although again it appeared the referee had missed a knock-on in the build-up.

Just before half time Sunderland added a second try with a good run from a scrum, to narrow the gap to 15v12.

Kendal finally took control with a ten minute burst of scoring midway through the second half.

The opening try was Hayley Hodgson’s fourth, after a good break from a scrum by Sarah Wilkinson, playing No.8. 20v12

A fifth Hayley Hodgson try followed, with the build up work come from a good run from Michelle Larkin (15 ?) (playing in the centre). 25v12

Hayley Hodgson then become provided, taking the kick off and making a long break down the left, before Sarah Wilkinson finished with the try. 30v12

Hayley Hodgson was substituted, which must have been a relief to Sunderland, but this meant Sarah Wilkinson moved out of the back row into the centre, where she set up the next try, finished with an excellent powerful run to the line by Michelle Larkin (15 ?). 25v12

The Wasps reshuffled the team with a number swapping positions including Shannon Barnes going to scrum half, with Catherine Sewell joining the three quarter line.

In the first half the Wasps had struggled at scrums against a powerful Sunderland pack, whilst they had also had problems on their own throws at lineouts, but as the game progressed Emma Rowlinson (7 ?) and Mary Sandfield (4) started to win ball on Sunderland throws.

With fifteen minutes to play, Sunderland pulled a try back. They ran a penalty, then a kick was put through to the line, Catherine Sewell appeared to have touched the ball down, but a Sunderland player followed through, and the referee awarded the try. 25v17.

The Sunderland outside half struck the difficult conversion kick well, only for the ball to hit the upright to bounce back.

At the end of the game, Sunderland added a fourth try, and their outside half proved her first kick was no fluke, doing it again, putting in an excellent kick from a difficult angle only for the ball to bounce back off the post.

Another entertaining game between two good teams. The Wasps skills seem to improve every game, but so do the opposition’s.

Whilst it may be the regular names on the scores sheet, there were plenty of other good performances in attack, especially Emma Rowlinson (? 7) in the forwards and Michelle Larkin (? 15) in the backs.

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As ever sorry for not been 100% on names - hopefully someone can correct any mistakes