XRugby, a new format of rugby playable with as few as 5-a-side and with a much advertised international competition at the O2 Arena this weekend, came to Cornwall first as girls from around the Duchy arrived in sunny Penryn on Sunday for the inaugural leg of the XGirl Cup.
Partly an greater opportunity for girls to play in their own club colours rather than as part of larger cluster teams, partly an introduction to shorter formats of the game like the sevens which forms part of the girls county programme, and partly a chance for genuine competitive rugby rather than just friendlies in the older two age groups, the XGirl Cup didn't disappoint on any of those grounds. It also produced a day of rugby full of fun for players and spectators alike; multiple neutral observers all commented they had never heard so much giggling at a rugby match before!
In the U18s, the combination of Penzance and Bude (now officially linked for the rest of the tournament) went undefeated with some irresistible offence, including beating hosts Penryn/Newquay 54-50 with the last play of the game!
The U15s saw some similarly intense competition with Launceston, Penryn and the combined St Austell/Perranporth teams all winning two of their three games. Huge credit goes to Liskeard/Penzance/Newquay too, recovering from two big losses and a 21pt first half deficit to secure a valiant four-try bonus point against Launceston.
The U13s played the same format of games albeit as friendlies, and it was Perranporth/Newquay who shone with four wins from four and a whopping 208 points!
The league points accumulated by the U15s and U18s get shared between the clubs based on the proportion of players involved on the team. That way clubs with plenty of players aren't disadvantaged by temporarily combining with smaller clubs, whilst those smaller clubs can still earn points for themselves too.
Bude/Penzance currently lead the U18s, whilst Launceston are a whisker ahead in the U15s with 3 legs to go before the final knockout round, scheduled for the morning of a Cornwall Ladies home game in what should be a great female Cornish sporting occasion.
A massive thank you to Penryn RFC for hosting, even taking the measure of cancelling Friday's boys training to help ensure the pitches were playable for the girls; to Joshua Stevens from CRRS and Bruce Radford of Penryn for refereeing the unfamiliar format alongside the girls coaches; to Lesley Bennett of St Austell for assembling the teams on the day; and to all the girls, coaches and parents for enjoying the day so much!
U18 Results
Penryn/Newquay 50-54 Bude/Penzance
Penryn/Newquay 38-28 Launceston
Bude/Penzance 61-35 Launceston
U15 Results
St Austell/Perranporth 28-33 Launceston
Penryn 64-14 Liskeard
Penryn 49-54 St Austell/Perranporth
Launceston 54-26 Liskeard/Penzance/Newquay
St Austell/Perranporth 69-19 Liskeard/Penzance/Newquay
Penryn 35-19 Launceston
U13 Results
Perranporth/Newquay 46-14 Penryn
Penzance 49-12 Launceston/Liskeard/Bude
Launceston/Liskeard/Bude 54 St Austell 35
Perranporth/Newquay 42-14 Penzance
Penryn 14-47 Launceston/Liskeard/Bude
St Austell 14-70 Perranporth
Penzance 0-42 Penryn
Launceston/Liskeard/Bude 0-50 Peranporth
Penryn 33-St Austell 21
Penzance 35-St Austell 14
Report by Ross Tucknott