Army Rugby Final on Wednesday 11 March 2009

On this day we played 1 Scots (1st Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland) in an extremely hard fought and tense final held at Aldershot Rugby Stadium. Battle commenced  in typical cup final style with both teams probing the opposition's defence. We kept the ball tight for the first 20 minutes and there is no question we had the upper hand in the early skirmishes. Lance Corporal Sweeney put over two penalties to give us a slim lead, but as the match drew towards half-time the Scots attacked with lightning speed and deft handling which resulted in them scoring three unanswered tries in 12 minutes. The half-time score saw the Scots ahead by 21 to 6 and we faced a mountain to overcome in the second half.

The half-time team talk from our skipper, Lance Corporal Lewis 23, was calm and composed and was supported with sensible and honest input from the coaches, WO2 (CSM) Campbell and Sergeant Hawkins. Not Surprisingly a re-invigorated Welsh side launched itself into the second half and in no time it was gaining the upper hand. The Scots managed a solitary penalty in the early part of the second half, however, a converted penalty try, following a magnificent show of strength from our forwards, kept the score line ticking over. Following another surge our skipper breached the Scots defensive line and with Lance Corporal Dwyer converting, the boys had pegged the score line back to 24-20. In the dying minutes of the game and with the ball under control of the Welsh pack, a moment of opportunity presented itself to the Scots and a sneaking probe under our radar brought the Scots a score at the final whistle.