Former England and Saracens scrum half Georgina Gulliver (nee Rosario) was on hand last Sunday to present the Penryn Rugby girls with their end of season awards, after an historic year with plenty of firsts.
With the sun emerging during the preceding training session – the girls have been back at training since the first week of August under Penryn Rugby's comprehensive anti-Covid measures – the awards were able to be held outside in the Dugout Bar so that parents, players and even some of the league-winning Penryn Ladies could all listen to Georgina's experiences of the highest levels of female rugby, as well as answering plenty of questions from the socially-distanced attendees.
The moment that raised the most eyebrows was Georgina's announcement that she would be back to participate in some satellite sessions at Penryn RFC this season. More details to follow on these sessions shortly, which will be open to girls in local minis sections and schools as well as the girls teams, so with the first one coming very soon be sure to keep an eye on the website and the club's social media channels!
With both the U18s and U15s girls finishing second in the inaugural season of CRFU's XGirl Cup and with an incredible 14 girls being selected for Cornwall duties last season there was a lot of success to celebrate, but the awards themselves were far more focused on the improvements made by everyone in the group: improvements fostered in an environment which puts fun, friendship and enjoyment above all else.
There was, however, an element of the bittersweet to the event. With the pandemic hitting right at the time the rain-soaked season had finally swung into top gear, the Penryn U18 girls – nearly all of whom were in their last season before heading their separate ways to university, the armed forces and/or ladies rugby – found their final season cut cruelly short, as well as missing out on the beach rugby tournaments with have become a mainstay of the girls' rugby calendars. The awards were therefore also our chance to say goodbye to a collection of amazing young ladies whose positivity and leadership will be sorely missed by all.
It also means that the Penryn Rugby girls are in a state of rebuilding, and we need more players! We have a core of experienced and talented players in all three age groups supported by great coaches, but we need more girls to come and try out what is the fastest growing female sport in the world!
Right now is a great time to try the sport for the first time, with Covid restrictions limiting training on contact skills to just 15mins per session and fixtures currently limited to touch rugby, girls can come and learn the game at a pressure-free pace and grow their skills as the game slowly unlocks more areas of play under the RFU's measured Return To Rugby roadmap. Because of the stringent precautions placed on team sport participation by the government, rugby training and inter-club touch games continues to be able to operate despite the latest lockdown measures.
So if you're female between 11-17 and interested in giving rugby a go, contact team manager Melissa Pentecost about joining the Penryn Rugby girls. If you're younger than that then the minis also have girls playing from U6s upwards: contact Chris Brush (who also helps coach the girls teams) about joining the minis.
If you're not female and U18... well you probably have a friend or relative that is! Rugby is a great sport for having fun, making friends, keeping fit and working as part of a team all all sizes, shapes and abilities, so feel free to encourage anyone and everyone that you know!
Award Winners:
Most Improved Passing – Millie Brown (U15s)
Most Improved Tackling – Amy Horton (U13s)
Most Improved Rucking – Charlotte Pixton (U15s)
Most Improved Support Play – Maeya Mason (U15s)
Most Improved Backs Technique – Rihanna Pixton (U13s)
Most Improved Forwards Technique and Player's Player Award – Poppy Pentecost (U15s)
Best Clubsperson – Lucy Rendle (U18s)
