Match Report: SATURDAY 15TH OCTOBER 2016
Saturday 15th October saw the normal chaos of Saturday mornings return for EUNC, with five BUCS matches to play. EUNC 3
The day was kicked off by EUNC 3 who took 3 points against Stirling 1 at home. Stirling went out strong as always and gave the 3s a highly competitive match. The Edinburgh side captained by Heather Marshall made a promising start, and it was a draw after the first quarter. Captain Heather made some amazing interceptions, and worked well with Claire Metcalfe in the defensive circle providing the last line of defence. Stirling however did not let up in the second half, putting on pressure in the defensive third. Jenny O’Reilly had her work cut out as she was up against Scotland defender Lauren Tait, but held her own in the circle. Both teams battled into the 4th quarter, with some marvellous defence from Stirling, saw the opposition catch up to within 2 goals, we were on the edge of our seats! Edinburgh showed amazing team spirit and kept on going. After an amazing game from Jenny O’Reilly, she went off with an ankle injury in the final 7 minutes. We wish Jenny a speedy recovery. Man of the Match Louise Ferguson, put in an amazing performance at WD. In the end, EUNC 3 took the win, 38-33 FT and the team were overjoyed to have won against such a tough side! Thank you for the match Stirling.
EUNC 5
Next up was EUNC 5, who had an early start and travelled up to Aberdeen for their first BUCS match of the season. Two late pull outs from EUNC players meant the squad made the trip to play Aberdeen 2 with only one substitute. Both teams were looking solid in the warm up but got off to a messy start. After a scrappy first half from both sides, Edinburgh were behind 16-12 at half time. Edinburgh pulled it together in the second half, and keeping this energy up they won the last two quarters. Lizzie Quacquarelli was voted man of the match, with herself and Gemma Finegold proving themselves unstoppable in the attacking circle. Unfortunately, the strong performance in the second half wasn’t enough to pull back the score gap from the first half. EUNC 5 lost out 29-30 FT. An unlucky loss, but spirits remain high within EUNC 5. The match provides lots to build on during this week before taking on Aberdeen 1 in the Scottish Conference Cup next Saturday.
EUNC 4
In the second home match of the day, EUNC 4 took on Dundee 2. After beating Dundee 1 earlier this season, EUNC 4 went into this fixture feeling cautiously confident. Elise Printer, 4th year, forgot to bring her trainers down to the match, so did her warm up on the run home to collect them. Dundee 2 started out strong, but EUNC 4 played their own game and took the early lead. Izzi Whittick played amazing as did Emma Watkinson who was voted man of the match. Dundee 2 gave some tough competition, and the match felt a lot harder than the previous game against Dundee 1, so it'll be interesting to see what happens when Dundee 1 play Dundee 2 in November. Alice Insull had an amazing game at GD, and along with GS Jessica Menzies was nominated players’ player of the match. EUNC 4 kept their cool in the second half of the match, with Dundee catching up to within 2 goals at points. It was a tight game until the very end, but the Edinburgh side took the win with a final score of 53-49. It will be crucial for EUNC 4 to maintain this as they face a tough match against Napier 1 next weekend in the Scottish Conference Cup.
EUNC 1
Next up, EUNC 1 took on Strathclyde 1 in their first BUCS match of the season. After going 4 years unbeaten in Scottish 1A, EUNC 1 are looking to maintain their performance this year. Really good to get out first run out as a team. EUNC 1 put out a really strong performance in the 1st quarter with some really good defence the whole length of the court. Strathclyde fought back in the 2nd and 3rd quarters and narrowed the score gap. Last quarter saw centre court player Clare White move into goal attack. Kate Meagh and Clare White worked well in the attacking circle, and the Edinburgh side extended their lead. A competitive match, with a full time sore of 53-39. A positive start to the season for Edinburgh, the tough match provided lots to work on going forward, but it’s still early, lots to learn.
EUNC 2
The 2s had a very strong start to the season on Saturday against Herriot-Watt by holding their own in every area of the court. The shooters kept their cool and racked up a total of 59 goals with some impressive shooting stats. The centre court brought the ball through the court seamlessly and really took the pressure off of the shooters by always being available on the circle edge. Our defence were similarly always available for backup. They were outstanding and created what felt like endless turnovers throughout the game. Their efforts definitely accredit for the substantial goal difference. The 2s had an unbelievable start and kept a 12-0 lead for a whole 10 minutes. A special shout out goes to our Freshers. Taves Mason kept calm under the pressure and sunk many a long shot as well as creating some turnovers in defence! Lauren Metcalfe caused problems all over the court with her deceivingly long arms and clean interceptions. And Scarlet Wilkins used her height and strength in the circle by taking rebounds, putting pressure on every shot, and therefore helped to keep the oppositions score below half of ours. Congrats also to our two centre court beauties Emma Niven and Isabel Pearce who had their debuts for the 2s after a move up from the 3s. They created an experienced feeling on court which led to an overall enjoyable match for our side and a threatening one for Herriot-Watt. Thank you to our coach Mary-Ann Cosgrove for coming along and working her magic! The final score was 59-24.
