Krakens Secure First Away Win Against Shetland Valkyries

The Krakens travelled to Shetland on Saturday with 21 players and a seriously strong squad, returning home with a fantastic win and, for the first time ever, a victory over Shetland Valkyries away from home!

The game got off to a slightly slower start than we would have liked, with a few passes going astray - or, as Mike would say, “passing to the invisible man!”

Despite not quite finding our usual rhythm, the Krakens defended brilliantly, holding Shetland out for the first 10 minutes before they crossed for their opening try. Shetland were equally determined in defence, making us work hard for every opportunity.

A quick moment of wisdom from vice-captain Caitlin, followed by a much-needed sanity check from Coach Mike, was just what we needed to remind us how the Krakens play and get our heads back in the game!

With five minutes left until half-time, the forwards put in some lovely work, crashing the ball up the middle and securing possession. The ball was then worked out to the backs, with Caitlin drawing in the Shetland defence before the ball went through the hands, landing with Speedy winger Sophie who finished the move brilliantly to get the Krakens on the scoreboard! Megan Douglas added the conversion, taking us into half-time 10-7.

After regrouping at half-time and discussing what needed to improve, the Krakens came out ready to work. Our forwards were absolutely outstanding in the second half, putting in some unreal graft. The scrums were fantastic, our own lineouts were working brilliantly, and we saw some hard carries backed up by excellent support running across the team. We were quicker to the breakdowns, securing possession and generating fast ball. This made it much harder for Shetland to get their defensive line set, allowing us to build pressure and score some well-worked tries.

There were, of course, a few moments of classic Krakens chaos along the way! Following some great work from Shauna to turn over possession, Lauren attempted to boot the ball up the pitch from behind our own try line… only to send it straight into the post! After the referee had to consult Google to establish what happened next, Shetland were awarded a scrum on the 5-metre line. A clear DOTD award for Lauren

A huge thank you also goes to Kyra, Connie and Megan D, who all got some game time for Shetland, allowing the match to continue with full numbers on both sides. What a team effort!

Tries scored by Sophie, Justine, Aileen, Connie, Holly & Cubby. Conversions from Megan D.

Special shoutout to Connie who scored her first try on her second ever game of rugby. An absolutely cracking performance earned her our Back of the Match award. Our Forward of the Match went to Holly Trick, who was her usual hardworking, relentless self.

It was fantastic to have Coach Mike back with us this weekend. We know you said you were stepping away, Mike, but please don’t ever fully leave us!

A massive thank you to Shauna for organising the whole trip. Getting everyone, everything and all the logistics sorted is no easy task, and we appreciate all the work that goes on behind the scenes.

Finally, a huge thank you to our new sponsors for this season. We were proud to take to the pitch in our new strips, and your support means so much to the club.

A strong squad, a brilliant team performance, plenty of laughs and a little bit of history made along the way.

First-ever away win against Shetland Valkyries - we’ll take that!