Darts perform well despite defeat

Darts travelled to Aylesford for their second league match of the season knowing this would be another tough fixture. The weather however was very kind to players and spectators alike with the sun coming out after the torrential rain in the morning. We had to play 14 a side as injuries had affected the home teams squad and it was decided to play without a full back which in the end played into the hands of Aylesford who a couple of very impressive backs out wide who knew how to use the space out wide. The game started and the home forwards were very organised and took the ball at the young Darts pack with ruck after ruck keeping the ball very tight and although the visitors were tackling well it seemed that they were always being driven back that extra yard or two creating space for the runners to exploit. As usual the team was led from the front by Skipper Lola who had to move into the front row with great support from Lara and Innes who seemed to be everywhere. Emily D was back in the side after injury playing her first match of the season at No 8 but it was a tough day as she received a knock and was going backwards for some of the early scrums but with ball in hand she made good ground. Young Jaz was again doing really well at prop showing no nerves having come up from U15's as was Tierney who had to move into lock for the first.. Aylesford kept Darts on the back foot and scored a couple of good tries using a combination of strong forward drives with pace out wide. Darts never give up and despite having to make more changes with Millie coming in at lock again playing her first U18 match they kept trying to play an expansive game and were also using their forwards to try and draw in defenders before moving it out wide. It seemed that they were getting into the match when small errors were punished severley by the home side. We were winning some good lineout ball with Megan throwing in really well but as the crucial moments we either missed a pass or dropped the ball. It was getting more even in the forwards with Millie, Emily A, Jaz and Innes putting in some strong driving runs but the defensive organisation from the young Aylesford team was impressive and their line speed seemed faster that our senior 1st team. At half time it was Aylesford's match and all Darts could do was play for pride which they did achieve. Lilly and Ewa our newly formed half back pairing are starting to work well together and Lizzie and Anna were tackling strongly and making some great runs but we were guilty of keeping our strike runners too tight and not putting them into space out wide. It was tough to defend on the wings with two very good players but both Holly and Isabelle worked really well and put in some great tackles and made sure that the opposition had to be on their toes when they had the ball out wide looking to get behind the home defence. Lizzie Gubby came on for her first start of the season and although she didn't have a great deal to do was confident going forward with the ball. Darts again fell foul of making small errors when putting Aylesford under pressure allowing the home side to score a couple more tries from turnover ball but this didn't dent their confidence. Talie came on in the back row having converted from the backs and was immediately in the action defying her size by taking the ball strongly at the Aylesford team and putting in some good tackles. Darts pressure put them deep into the Aylesford half and following a succession of penalties they drove close to the line and it was eventually Lilly who went over for a deserved score which was converted by Ewa. Darts continued to show great spirit and determination and again kept pushing Aylesford back and it was skipper who was rewarded with Darts second try right at the end of the match which was again converted by Ewa.
A good match to watch from both sides which was deservedly won by Aylesford who were well organised and strong going forward in the pack, defended well and saw an opportunity very quickly when there was space. Darts played really well with a much changed side with a number of players out of position but their team spirit is fantastic. Jaz was great at the set piece and taking the ball on, Lola was again a great leader from the front, Lizzie tackled everything as did Isabelle and Ewa has really grown into the fly half position and any one of them could have been player of the match but the award went to Innes who was immense throughout the match in defence as well as taking the ball at the opposition. The result didn't reflect the effort and skill of the young Darts team but they will improve as the season progresses and will no doubt be a team to be reckoned with in the future.