Rugby Club CERN – Meyrin – Saint-Genis

We were blessed with a sunny warm September day for our first match of the 2009/10 season. Kick-off was 13:00 and we were there with plenty of enthusiasm. This match was our first match with our new coach and we had a number of fresh / new players too. We also had some fabulous support from people who’d chosen just to come watch / support us – so thank you all for that.

Our last encounter with Yverdon had given us a great win – were the out for “revenge” this time? Well, the match got under way and was pretty intense from the start.They used their forward pack a lot to drive the ball forward, crashing into our defence and hoping to draw more of our players in. They were quick and strong in the rucks and their first try came as a result of run from the back of a ruck on the blind side. A trick they were to employ frequently throughout the game with the strong, determined running from their No. 9. Even when we had the ball they were quick to apply the pressure. Just clearing the ball from out own 22 was suddenly more diffcult than expected. Still, we soldiered on, determined to pick up our game where necessary and fight on. They managed a few more tries with similar tactics as before, though we were responding and managed to force them back off our line and hold up some would be tries.
The second half got off to a similar start. However, we had also suffered a few minor injuries which meant we had to substitute players and positions. We needed to adapt our game and figure out the weak points in their game. This proved quite a demanding task but with sheer determination we managed to put up much more of a fight. Moreover, we had quite a few good attempts at their line and managed to put them under some pressure this time. We weren’t faultless and where we failed to reset the defensive line quickly they sneaked over for a few more tries, but our efforts paid off with a try of our own. In general it was a tough fought match. We had an inexperienced front row in opposition to their much experienced one but where the girls had been working on their line-outs proved its worth as they were very strong and consistent. Final score 48-5. Obviously we have work to do – but it was an experience much enjoyed by all and everyone, especially the new players, will have learnt a lot from the game. Team spirit remains strong and we’re looking forward to out next game against Bern on th 19th September.