U16 Girls 10 – Claremorris 15

On Sunday last the Galway NWC u16s girls came up against the Claremorris Colts in what was sure to be an exciting match. The teams had met early in the season when the Galway amalgamation of Galwegians/Tuam/Oughterard was fresh and Claremorris were able to take advantage of this inexperienced side.

Claremorris however, did not appear to be prepared for the huge advancements the Galway side had made and the uphill fight they would have to endure to gain ground on the crisp January morning.

The two sides met strong and hard, both holding their line well into the first 20 minutes before Claremorris put the first try on the board. Galway did not take this lying down and it wasn't long before Galwegian's own Laura Hastings broke the defense and secured Galway's first try. Half time 5-5.

The second half saw Galwegian's Caitlin O'Hara making ground on the Claremorris defense line and scoring Galway NWC's second try of the game. The forward packs of both teams were evenly matched and they continued to attack and defend at an unimaginable pace, though Galway's back line made some great attempts at the Claremorris try line it was not to be as the Colts closed in tight. It was Claremorris though that saw the opportunities to break the Galway NWC defense and they scored twice more leaving the score at 15-10 to Claremorris.

The Galway NWC team's pace did not let up and the girls made great ground on the attack but unfortunately the clock was against them. Full time, Claremorris win. The Galway NWC girls showed superb sportsmanship and grace in their defeat, holding their heads high and graciously accepting their Connacht league medals with pride.

The two teams will meet each other again this Saturday at Crowley Park at 12pm for their cup quarter final and it is sure to be another spectacular event.