On Thursday 1st June Northcross, in less than ideal conditions, once again hosted the NH Girls Rugby 7’s Zone Day. Considering the state of the weather and the increase in teams and amount of games played the pitch held up brilliantly. Birkdale, Orewa and Belmont contested the U55kg Grade while 5 teams, Birkdale, Belmont, Glenfield, Northcote and Northcross contested the Open Weight Grade. Unfortunately, for our girls we had to combine our U55kg and Open Weight teams to ensure we could get all the games in the desired timeframe. The girls were super understanding, a plan was devised and they ripped into it!
The U55kg grade saw Orewa completely dominate and win all their games by 40+. In the Open Weight grade however, it was a completely different story. Despite a significant size difference, both Belmont and Northcross played very good 7’s rugby to make it through to the final. Both teams spread the ball, played with width and their free flowing styles matched each other; it was going to be a tight final. The Northcross girls had pool wins over Glenfield, Belmont, Birkdale and a tight 17-17 draw against Northcote. In the final, spurred on by a spirited local crowd, Northcross came out on top in a very tight encounter, 17-10 to retain their Open- Weight Title. Standout players were Lucia Sanna, whose all-round skills, vision and tenacity were incredible, and Mia Isgrove and Shyne Chapman, whose youthful exuberance and exceptional skills (for their age) playing integral parts in the girls success.
A massive thank you to our referee, Shaun, who refereed the entire day (15 games) without a break! Also, big thanks to; my dedicated touch judges – Rocco Chapman, Loghan Gibbon and Noah Beazley; runner -Lexi Turner and helper – Anna Lewthwaite.
Scott Washer – Coach and Teacher in Charge
