The Renegades the took the pitch on an unseasonably warm November day last weekend against the Village Lions. The first time Monmouth played the lions this season was one of the most anticipated games of the fall. Back in early October both teams battled under the skyscraper backdrop of New York City and the Renegades gave the lions what would be their first and only loss of the season; until they met again.
The Renegades knew the Village Lions would be traveling to Thompson Park with a vengeance and this game was the only thing that stood between the Monmouth Women and an undefeated fall season. The Lions showed early on that they were not going to back down and some penalties by Monmouth led to the Lions scoring the first try of the match. However, the Monmouth Women quickly pulled it together and answered with a few tries of their own. Overall the level of play that the Renegades exhibited was a huge improvement on the season and many of the tries scored were ‘textbook’ team tries. The forwards did a great job at securing ball and quickly getting it out to the backs who took advantage of the opportunities to score on the outside. The first half ended 20-14 with Monmouth in the lead.
The Renegades would hold on to that lead for the remainder of the match wrapping up the 2016 fall season with no loses. Going into Thanksgiving week the women have a lot to be thankful for. Ending one of the longest seasons they have seen in years, the support they had all season long from their amazing coaches, the rugby club and their dedicated fans truly helped them to push through and come out on top! The Monmouth women were happy to have accomplished many goals set back in August and are looking forward to their spring tour in Savannah! Come April stay tuned, the Renegades will be taking the pitch for a crossover playoff match with a team from the North East Rugby Football Union. See you all in the spring!!
Final score 32-19. Tries by Nicole Carroll, Kathleen Kerwin (2 tries), Taryn Sievers, Becca Moose and Kate Kelly.
Kelly “Stitch” Rafferty- 1 conversion