Roses 2009 Review: Rugby

Traditionally one of the "big" sports at Roses, rugby spanned eight games over two days, two disciplines and two clubs, and York obliterated Lancaster to bring home all but one of the 17 points on offer.

Friday saw the mouthwatering prospect of rugby 7s, the most dynamic and free-flowing version of the sport. With half the players on the same size pitch, trickery comes out to play and the fleet of foot shine. Thus the backs and back-rowers stepped up, with the tight five players watching from the sidelines, including a nervous Men's club captain Mike Callis, worried that his sides hadn't had much chance to practise at 7s.

But from the moment Men's 3rds kicked things off, he need never have been in doubt, as York shot ahead inside 2 minutes through Pete Terraga, who showed phenomenal pace to outsprint the Lancastrian defence over a full sixty metres. Though the majority of points came in the second half, Lancaster never got near the try line and York took the opening fixture 24 - 0.

Meanwhile, on rugby pitch 2, the Women's 2nds were suffering from the pace of Lancaster winger Laura Grundy, who thrice outgassed the home defence for a hat trick of tries. Although Louise Blockwell pulled one back for York, the game finished 20 - 5 to Lancaster; a poor reflection of the evenness of the contest, unfortunately unbalanced by one player's pace.

The Men's 2nds followed the 3rds and struck quickly, but were instantly pegged back, leading to a deadlocked first half, broken by scrum-half Tim Walker just before the break. Ringing the changes at half-time, Doorsafe's finest Lionel Owusu took the field and soon strode in a try to make things safe, before Rory McGregor rounded off the victory at 22 - 5.

Following the defeat of their teammates, the York Women’s 1st team were out to prove a point to their cousins from across the Pennines, and leave them in no doubt as to which side would dominate this weekend's rugby. Clare Beer and Women's captain Chrissie Leahy notched up two tries apiece, to just one in reply, winning the game resoundingly for the home side, 24 - 5.

In Friday's final match, the Men's 1sts stepped up, desperate to make it a clean 7s sweep and bag another two points - still vital at this stage with only a three-point lead on the red rose. In another fabulous start, 1sts fullback Griff Jones and his 2nds counterpart Tom Buggé piled on 12 points by half time and Buggé's second masterful crossing of the whitewash from the restart seemed to seal the victory at 19 - 0. But the home side thought they'd won too early, and Lancaster hit back with two tries of their own, unsteadying York's men for the first time. Fortunately, Ollie Tilney was on hand, skipping past two defenders to nail the result 24 - 10.

6 points out of 7 on match day one boded well indeed for the XVs fixtures on Saturday, but although Callis proclaimed himself, "Exceptionally happy," he urged his sides, "Not to be complacent." Come noon the next day it was clear his advice had been followed, with the Men's 2nds settling into a rhythm very quickly, defending solidly and going forward well as a team.

After an early exchange of penalty kicks saw York go 6 - 3 up through winger Sebastian Hurst, Lancaster were gunning for a try, but York held firm and ensured that the opposition's ugly, scrappy forward play gained no rewards. Unleashing a spell of pressure of their own, York grabbed two tries in the final ten minutes of the first half, with centres Jack Miles and Des Pollen crossing the whitewash. Hurst fought the high winds well to slot one conversion, making the half-time score 18 - 3 to York. After the break York calmly soaked up pressure, just as club president James Smallwood calmly withstood his opposite number's swinging fists when the Lancaster frustration boiled over. And soon enough York sealed the game with a breakaway Hurst try and a great move off a scrum for Ryan Johnston to go over in the corner. The final scoreline of 32 - 3 was a fair reflection of the much higher standard of York's game - the 2nds have played excellent rugby throughout the year, even during their early losses, and this comprehensive Roses win was their just desserts.

Thanks to disappointing scheduling, the Women's 1sts game overlapped with the Men's 1sts, denying the ladies their chance for a big crowd. A more significant blow to the side however, was the loss of lock Lizzie Prance to an ankle injury in the first minute of the game, and indeed York quickly went 7 - 0 down, again plagued by the pace of Lancaster winger Grundy. Nevertheless, York fought back with a try from loosehead prop and kicker Kirsty Wheeler, before an exchange of tries between Grundy and York captain Chrissie Leahy took the score at half-time to 12 - 10. After a couple of Lancaster ladies had bared all - including painted-on red roses - during the break, York showed their mettle and took control, with Leahy breaking through again for her second. As the game drew to a close, winger Aimee Miller dived over to make things safe - despite a late Lancaster try - delivering a deserved final score of 22 - 17 to York, and with it four more Roses points, which now served only to further widen the winning margin.

But well before the conclusion of the Women's matches, spectators' eyes had turned to Rugby Pitch 1 and one of Roses most titanic clashes: the Men's Rugby 1sts. York got off to a flying start, with a delightful move sending scrum-half Tim Walker over under the posts, to put York seven points to the good early on. After conceding a penalty on the back-foot, York calmly marched up the pitch and gained two of their own, and fly-half Rob Grant duly obliged to make it 13 - 3 with the home side in the ascendancy. Soon, York's pressure told, and a slick move from a line-out in the left hand corner saw captain Callis powering through for a smashing try and a 17 point lead at the break.

Undisturbed by the half-time streakshow, York were happy to defend for a stretch, before eventually winning another penalty to go 23 - 3 ahead. Soon after though, vice-captain Grant - who had been running the game with ease - was sin-binned, and Lancaster capitalised on their numerical advantage to peg back five points and take it to 23 - 8. Although there was still a full quarter of an hour to play, York's dominance was never really in doubt, and with Grant's return came the game's final try courtesy of inside centre Dave Lowe. With a final penalty slotted at the death, York won a resounding 31 - 8 victory, trampling the red rose into the dust wholesale with opportunities to spare.

As jubilant scenes erupted - with 2nds captain Sam Dudley hoisted aloft a crowd of players to lead the victory songs on a megaphone - Callis rejoiced: "It's five wins out of five and I'm ecstatic. Obviously great fun for us but I think it was good to watch too! I'm over the moon!" After a truly fantastic season on all fronts, the rugby teams carried their inspiring form into Roses, as the oval-balled sport mirrored the overall result of a decimating victory for York.

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