Hillhead Jordanhill 16 Murrayfield Wanderers 12

It is a cliche that defence wins matches, yet cliches are truths we have become bored with. This was a match that was won through the determination of Hills to end their Wandies jinx, a determination that was displayed in hard graft and uncompromising defence. The announcement at the end of the match that Stephanie Johnston of "Murrayfield Wanderers" was the player of the match gave some insight into the stranglehold that Wandies have seemingly had on Ladies rugby in Scotland over the past few seasons. It was almost as if some around the ground could hardly believe that anyone but Wandies would win the cup. To be fair to the announcer, the error was quickly rectified and Steph duly stepped up to collect her award. However, for those who were there it would be hard not to admit that Hills had the upper hand for the majority of the match. It wasn’t until the dying minutes that Wandies were able to get on the scoreboard at all and the result never seemed in much doubt.

The day before the game saw the Hills players and coaches all preparing in their own way, some went out for lunch with friends, some spent all day hanging around airports trying to get to Glasgow, some started to get themselves psyched up for the game reading match reports pertaining to the opposition on the SRU website. The coach spent the day playing golf in Hawaii. However they prepared and whatever they did, it seemed to work as right from the first whistle, with the sun in their eyes, the team played with purpose and intent. Susie Brown marked her return to the fold in the opening exchanges with a big hit which got the support on their feet and the dander of the Hills forwards well and truly up. Heather Lockhart and Lindsey Smith were big on the go–forward and behind the pack the backs were only too willing to mix things up and make the ball work. The opening period of pressure was rewarded with a penalty in front of the posts in the 6th minute, which captain and stand off Julie Craig made no mistake in putting over for the first 3 points, Hills were on their way.

If their support expected this to galvanise Wandies, it didn’t happen. The next fifteen minutes saw pretty much one–way traffic as Hills took the game to the opposition, continually pressurising, looking for openings and playing all of the rugby in the opposition half. Despite their efforts, the only real opportunity for points came with a penalty in the 11th minute but unfortunately this was pushed wide and the scoreline remained the same. However early warning signs of disciplinary problems to come were exhibited not long after and as Wandies took a penalty kick to touch, seeking to relieve some of the pressure, they presented the onlookers with a lighter moment as the ball connected with the head of a random SRU person standing in the tunnel who clearly wasn’t enthralled with the match unfolding out on the pitch and was looking the other way.

This incident, possibly unnoticed by most of the players, seemed to mark some kind of watershed as from here on Hills started to get on the wrong side of the referee. The penalty count against them began to rise and seizing on this, Wandies looked to get themselves into the game. A period of pressure in the Hills half culminated in a penalty which Wandies elected to kick, that they missed it with it bouncing back off the upright was unlucky. That they failed to capitalise on their territorial advantage was down to the solid defence put up by the Hills players. This was typified by the efforts of the pack who not only achieved parity with their opposite numbers but began to gain the upper hand, as demonstrated by their powerful scrummaging. It took a drop in concentration by Hills to give Wandies their best chance of the game so far as the ball was fumbled at the base of a scrum. However a guddle on the line, with both sides scrambling to make good, resulted in a penalty to Hills and Julie’s ever reliable boot gave them some breathing space.

The penalty count continued to mount against Hills and the team were making life very difficult for themselves. A few good runs by the backs had given a hint of their potential, but indiscipline was preventing any continuity from building. As a result Hills had to play for some time without the ball, but their defence was such that the scoreboard was never troubled by Wandies and there was a growing sense of anticipation that if Hills could just reduce the indiscipline and the penalties, the game would be theirs for the taking. A rare penalty to Hills on the 32nd minute put them a further 3 points in front and with the scoreline at 6–0 it was clear that if they could keep playing and protect the ball the score wouldn’t stay at that for long. By this stage of the game some good rugby had been played by Hills. Susie and Rachael were working well together at 8 and 9 respectively, the backs were starting to look dangerous and the forwards were providing a solid platform. But the penalties kept coming and the opportunities were few and far between. Possibly the half's best chance of a try came just before the break, when a great run from Hu Paul at fullback saw Hills with a 3 on 1 overlap on the left. That this wasn’t finished off could be put down to the Wandies physio (completely unintentionally it must be stressed) distracting the advancing Hills players as he ran on to get to a stricken Wanderer. It could also be put down to white line fever, a lack of communication or even just a sterling display of how to butcher a try scoring opportunity. Whatever it was, the chance was gone and at half time the score remained 6–0.

The second half saw Wandies step up their efforts to get their game started. In the opening exchanges, their number 8 found herself clear on her left touchline and in a strong run made a good 30 meters of ground. Hu Paul put in a cracking tackle to stop the 8 who must have been at least twice her size. This set the tone for most of the half as Hills struggled to get much time on the ball, with Wandies hammering away at their defence. That defence was magnificent, with no quarter given and some big shifts put in. It would be unfair on the team as a whole to pick out any individual in this effort as every player in a Hills jersey stood up and was counted. It was hardly surprising that something would give and eventually Tack – the hero of the club dinner – had to leave the field injured in the 53rd minute to be replaced by Fiona Reardon.

The pressure that Hills were exerting through their defence eventually told and from a clearing kick, the team found themselves with a scrum on the Wandies 22, 5 metres in from the right touchline. From the scrum Rachael linked with Julie who took the ball and moved it quickly left. A clever loop found Hu coming onto the ball at pace in the middle of the field with two defenders still to beat. These were seen off with strong, direct running and the try was given. Julie duly converted to take the score to 13–0 with 20 minutes left to play.

Wandies knew that they needed tries and from the restart they looked to once again play the ball in the Hills half of the field. The next 10 minutes saw an extended period of intensive defensive work by Hills, with Wandies throwing everything except the kitchen sink into the attack. Despite all this, amongst the Hills support there was little concern that the opposition might break through and it was clear this view was shared by their counterparts in the Wandies camp who were notable by their silence. Wandies were running it from everywhere, but Hills still kept them out. The only thing that seemed to work in Wandies favour was the continued propensity for Hills to give away penalties and eventually the inevitable happened with Hu Paul being sent to the sin bin for an infringement of some description. That there were only 5 minutes left on the clock meant that this would be the last she would be seen during the match and Hills would be forced to finish with 14 players on the field.

Finally Wandies had the advantage they needed and they made the disparity in numbers count as their 14 found a gap in the Hills defence and got through for an unconverted try. With only 3 minutes left on the clock and the score standing at 13–5, Hills took this as the signal to finish the game the way they had started. From the restart they took the game to Wandies and the next 5 minutes were spent deep in opposition territory as Hills made their one player disadvantage look non–existent. Wandies tried to emulate the Hills defensive efforts of earlier, but only succeeded in forcing the referee to again go to her pocket, this time yellow carding the Wandies number 8 for coming in from the side. This gave Julie a relatively easy kick in front of the posts to extend the lead to 16–5.

From the restart deep in injury time, Wandies managed to score a final try, one which happened so quickly that your reporter didn’t even see it, engaged as he was in keeping absent members of the Hills coaching team appraised of the score. This try was converted and followed immediately by the final whistle, closing the game out at Hills 16 Wandies 12.

Cue great scenes of celebration as first Steph received her player of the match award and then Julie lifted the cup, with the obligatory spraying of fizzy wine as Hills took the opportunity to let everyone know how they felt about finally winning the trophy which has eluded them for 15 years. In true Hills match reporting tradition the last word has to go to the head coach (Gary Kitchener) in a totally fabricated quote: "I'm over the moon, the girls' done well, mine's a Lambrini ... sorry, what was the question?"