Philly on fire as Brum triumph in battle of sisters
Jan 26 2012 |
Written by
Redbrick
Birmingham put in a solid performance on Wednesday afternoon to beat the University of East Anglia (UEA) at the Munrow Sports Hall and ensure that their year got off to a winning start.
The game was not as closely fought as the previous encounter between the two sides back in October, thanks mainly to Birmingham’s determination to keep the scoring between the opposing teams as far apart as possible. The encounter was notable for being a family affair, with sisters Rachel and Sarah Clark representing the home and away teams respectively. Ahead of the game it was revealed they had not spoken – a clear sign that any family ties were being put on hold for the duration of the clash.
The match itself was a decent spectacle, with plenty of end-to-end attacking and clever passing moves between Birmingham’s Centre Harriet Rogers and Wing Attack Joanne Clarke. They combined well with the prolific Philly Koehli, who was lethal in her shooting throughout the game and rounded off several impressive attacks.
From the first whistle Birmingham pushed forward and scored, though UEA did level the scores from 6-3 down in the first quarter to make it 7-7. However, the hosts increased the intensity of their play to lead 12-9 as the quarter ended – a lead they never relinquished. Birmingham increased their advantage to 18-13 in the second quarter, and were helped by a series of fouls committed by the East Anglia defence which allowed Koehli to add to her goal tally. By half time, the home side led 22-15 and were able to alter some of their player roles. They went on to dominate the third quarter, working hard to chase up missed chances and displaying improving levels of fitness. They were also aided by some wasteful shooting from UEA’s offensive players and by the start of the final quarter the difference between the sides was reflected in the 34-20 scoreline. The last fifteen minutes were more even in terms of overall play, but Birmingham’s superiority was already cemented and at full time a 20 point gap had the final score at 45-25.
Home coach Joan Hunter was pleased with the performance, ‘I’m very happy. Today was a good win.’ She added of her attackers, ‘they worked together very well and they have an understanding; the shooting will tell you that.’ Captain Clark was equally satisfied about winning her personal battle, ‘I do enjoy playing my sister, but it’s more exciting to win. I’m very pleased with the team, and the result shows how well we performed.’
Written by Reece Lawrence
Shortlink: http://redbrick.me/35406
Written by
Redbrick
on Jan 26 2012. Filed under Sports, University Match Reports.
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