January 30, 2013 at 5:54 p.m.
Holden's try seals victory for The Rest
Holden's try seals victory for The Rest
Teachers 62, The Rest 0
The proceedings were opened with the men's second team match, in what turned out to be a very one-sided affair. The Rest opened brightly and managed to work their way deep into Teachers territory. They were unable to conjure anything up, and the strong Teachers side, playing with a great mix of youth and experience, began to dominate. Andre Landy opened the scoring when he left the static defense for dead. Andrew Correia converted the difficult kick. Heath Robinson then extended the lead after racing clear, with David McHugh tagging on his first of the afternoon soon after. McHugh, who was impressive throughout, grabbed his second try following a good chase and kick through. Correia scored the conversion as Teachers went in at half time deservedly leading 24-0.
The second half brought no joy for the Rest, with Teachers completely on top and scoring at will. First up, McHugh completed his hat-trick and after Ian Morrison had converted, went on to snatch his fourth try. Correia again converted to further extend the lead. Pat Cooper was next to add his name to the score sheet, finishing off some fine play through the middle. Morrison kicked the conversion as Teachers continued to batter the Rest side. Rob Vieira finished off a move that he had been heavily involved in, before Rich Boyd and Morrison tagged on a try apiece to bring their try tally to ten, and Mike Montgomery's conversion left the final score sitting at 62-0 to the rampant Teachers men.
Teachers 1, The Rest 5
The ladies match was next, and after a tepid start, the Rest began to turn up the heat on their opponents. Teachers had defended well but the pressure eventually yielded results. Amanda Swan scored after good work down the right hand side, then Abbey MacPherson used her pace to go over in the left hand corner. Laura Haynes grabbed their third try after a fantastic line saw her ghost through the defense, leaving the Rest comfortably ahead 3-0 at the break. Teachers responded well after the break, and got themselves off the mark when Marie-Pierre Beaudoin scored a deserved try, but it was as good as it got for the hosts. Melanie Frigon Duchaine restored the three try advantage, with Magda Szalapak getting the final try of the match as the Rest ran out comfortable 5-1 winners in the end.
The Rest 10, Teachers 8
The final game of the day was the Denton Hurdle Memorial between the Teachers men's 1st XV and the Rest, in what proved to be a close and absorbing contest. The rain just before kick off made conditions difficult for both sides, as he slippery ball resulted in a number of early handling errors. The vast majority of the first half was played between both '22 meter lines, with neither side able to make any big inroads to the other's try line. Teachers were awarded a penalty for an offside infringement, that the ever dependable Greg Fraser split the uprights with. Rich Holden was making some lovely mini-breaks through the middle for the Rest, but every time it seemed like he would get away, Teachers smothered him with excellent cover tackling. It stayed 3-0 at half time.
The Rest started the second half more positively, and the forwards began to gain the hard yards with strong running. Captain Peter Dunkerley managed to burrow his way over the try line with a powerful burst to get his side off the mark. Holden slotted the conversion to make the score 7-3. Teachers showed their mettle though, and came back strongly in a manner reflective of the league champions status. Their forwards rove forward again and again, drawing in the defense, before the ball was spun out wide to Chris Way lurking on the wing to score. The conversion was missed but Teachers were back in front 8-7 as the game entered the final stretch. The Rest regained possession however, and launched an excellent attack as they crashed the ball forward in wave after wave. This drew Teachers offside, and Holden sent the ball straight down to middle to put the Rest back in front 10-8, and seal a fine win after a gripping encounter.
Gary Brady is the public relations officer for the Bermuda Rugby Football Union.
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