Barnes Ladies 1st XV 0 - 10 Ironsides Ladies 1st XV

Last weekend we were able to make some new club history, with a big double header as both Barnes Ladies teams played at home for the first time ever. The 2nd XV took to the pitches first, playing against the lovely Pulborough Ladies, and despite putting in a valiant effort, they weren't able to replicate the result earlier in the season and were beaten by a well drilled and determined Pulborough side. Next up was the ladies 1st XV, tasked with following the plucky performance of the 2s on this historic ‘Barnes Ladies Super Sunday’.

The 1s were set to face a strong Battersea Ironsides team, currently sitting at the top of the league table – and added to this the fact that they are Barnes’ most local rivals, with plenty of history between the two teams to bring some extra spice to the occasion! However, with a fantastic show of home support on the side-lines to get the players riled up, this was a challenge the team were more than ready to face.

The first half was marked by some incredible set-piece displays, with lock Camilla Barlow strong in the air in both attacking and defensive lineouts. After a huge physical battle in the midfield, with both teams presenting a near impenetrable defence, it took about 25 minutes for any points to be scored as Barnes forced Ironsides out wide for their first try. This made for a tricky conversion, which the Ironsides’ kicker missed.

Ten minutes later, Barnes went down to 14 players after Ruth Mottershead was sent to the bin for infringement at the ruck. This was something that both teams had been warned about; unfortunately we drew the short straw, with Ruth ‘taking one for the team’ on this occasion. Barnes held Ironsides off for a good while, but eventually they broke through our last ditch defence and scored. The conversion was again missed, and we were soon at half time with four more minutes left on the sin bin.

After a rousing chat from coach Kirsty, Barnes came out in the second half firing on all cylinders. As Barnes pushed Ironsides to their limits, gaps began to open up. With a fantastic injection of pace and some weaving runs from replacement half-back Nicole Kwee, the team took some chances to break through and gain ground. This, coupled with some immense tackling from the indefatigable Hannah Garbett, all helped in forcing Ironsides to make errors and give away penalties, even resulting in a couple of yellow cards on their side. Sadly, it was a case of ‘so close yet so far’ as Barnes just couldn’t capitalise on these chances - even if winger Hollie Johnston was denied a try through a dodgy ‘in touch’ call!

Even though the result didn’t go Barnes’ way, the performance was one of the team’s best all season - and to do that against the top of the league team is something the ladies should be very pleased with. Barnes can be particularly proud of the 0-0 result of the second half, for which we can also thank our fantastic green and gold supporters, or ‘the 16th man’!

In recognition of her darting runs (and her now iconic dummy passes), the ‘back of the match’ award went to Nicole – who has also recently gotten engaged, congratulations! ‘Forward of the match’ was awarded to the ever-reliable (if frequently carded) Ruth, who is a real talisman for Barnes. Finally, an emotional ‘players’ player’ award was presented to fly-half Ashley Holloway by her scrum-half partner captain Hellie. Ashley will sadly be leaving us in the next few months to return to Australia – she’ll be sorely missed!

All in all, the day was a resounding success for the ladies’ section, with both teams putting in strong performances and enjoying an all-round fantastic day of rugby. It was definitely a day that none of the players will forget!