Tyldsley Cling On

Having narrowly failed to beat the North Wales champions Colwyn Bay Mermaids, the second match against last season’s North West champions was a tough reprise.
The very experienced and well drilled Tyldsley team were keen to play rugby after sitting out the first match and made a lively start. Manchester were forced to defend against their North West rivals but did so well, and it was soon clear that another tight game was in progress. Deservedly, based on their territory and possession, Tyldlsey did get through the Manchester defence to take the lead that they held throughout.
That first score came after a lack of communication at the breakdown allowed Tyldsley to claim a ball that really should have been dealt with. From the unexpected attack, the Tyldsley backs were able to break through some despairing tackles to take a 5-0 advantage into the second half.
It was at this point in the afternoon that the Manchester girls could have been forgiven for flagging but that was certainly not the case. In fact the second half of the second game showed a combination of character and ability that finished the day on a very positive note.
Manchester upped the tempo and a tap penalty by Amy Lees looked poorly judged with players out of position but quick hands from Amber Smith and Jess Gurney almost caught Tyldsley on the hop.
The quicker service from Amy was by now giving the backs a little space and a flowing move from Amy to Nieve Jones to Leanne Murray to Katy Morten would have resulted in the try of the day against a weaker side. Manchester were looking good now with three clear cut chances when in scoring positions, denied as much by early season rustiness as the opposition.
Tyldsley knew their lead was not safe and kicked well to gain territory only to find Harriet Parsons at full back under some tricky high balls which she fielded well so that they were not able to capitalise.
The second match of a tough afternoon between three very well matched sides certainly gave grounds for optimism about the new season. To have lost by the one score to both the North Wales and North West champions with a team that included several of last season’s U15s playing their first U18 matches was an achievement. For the record, Tyldsley went on to beat Colwyn Bay in the final match by 7-0, so in the three matches played, no team won by more than a single score. Manchester certainly held their own in this company.

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