“THIS would be the icing on the cake for our season.”
Those were the words of Jersey RFC Women’s head coach Simon Le Moignan, ahead of his squad’s attempt to retain the Siam Cup on hostile turf tomorrow.
The RFC Women have had a season to remember, capturing the Women’s NC 2 South East title with an utterly dominating margin of 17 points ahead of the chasing pack, with just one defeat all campaign.
However, Le Moignan believes a Siam Cup win on away soil on top of the league success would complete the perfect season.
“As a group, we set two goals at the start of the season, to win the league and to retain the Siam,” he said.
“We have achieved our first objective in fine style by dominating the league. Now it’s time for us to shoulder the pressure of an away Siam and perform on the big stage.”
Footes Lane is set to play host to all four inter-insular matches on Saturday. The Fallaize Cup, both islands’ men’s second teams, kicks off proceedings in the morning, followed by the veterans’ Nash Cup, with the women’s Siam preceding the men’s in the late afternoon.
Le Moignan’s side come into this contest bringing the trophy with them, after a comprehensive 31-5 win over their bitter rivals last year in Jersey. Four first-half tries sealed victory on that day, something the head coach knows will be crucial to success this time around.
He continued: “We have to hit them hard early. It must be foot on the gas from the first whistle.
“We proved last year that is the way to get at them and all our girls know what is expected of them.
“The crowd over there is going to be hostile and loud. It’s always a fantastic atmosphere and something our girls will take in their stride.
“These are the types of games everyone wants to play in and I think we’re in an excellent position to be at our best.”
Le Moignan found himself in a challenging position as a coach this week, with the blessing of a completely injury-free squad. Whittling down the mammoth 32-player squad was no easy feat.
“We are blessed to be injury-free at this stage of the season, but having to let some girls down was really tough.
“It’s one of the hardest parts of being a coach, but it’s always a good problem to have. We have a squad of 22 players and two travelling reserves who are absolutely pumped to put on a show and get the job done.”
One member of the selected squad is 17-year-old star Seren Coombs, who is set to make her Siam Cup debut.
After an outstanding season with Jersey, which included spells with both Hove and Sussex U18s and a trial for the Welsh U18 Six Nations squad, Le Moignan believes she is more than ready for the occasion.
“Seren is a remarkable young woman,” continued the head coach.
“Her talent is undeniable and it gives us a massive boost to have someone like her in our ranks.
“She has shone throughout this season and gone from strength to strength.
“I think, although this is her first Siam, she won’t be phased at all. She’s incredibly calm and has confidence in her ability and she’s proved a menace for all oppositions this season.”
As well as Coombs, tomorrow marks a Siam captaincy debut for the inspirational “Mrs Reliable”, Katie de la Cloche. After taking the reins from former captain Lauren Lowe mid-season, de la Cloche has received endless praise from all those around the women’s set-up, none more so than her coach.
Le Moignan added: “Katie has been magnificent since taking over from Lauren [Lowe]. She’s a born leader and she has earned the respect of everyone.
“She’s the type of person who leads from the front and always wants to be in the thick of things.
“Knowing how challenging an environment we can expect tomorrow with the crowd and the pressure, her leadership will be so pivotal if we are to be successful.”
Le Moignan concluded: “We want to put on a show and prove to both our fans and theirs that we are the dominant team. This is an international match, that’s how we’re looking at it.
“It’s an honour to represent your Island in the Siam Cup and I have no doubt our girls will do Jersey proud tomorrow.”
The Women’s Siam Cup is scheduled to start at 1.45pm from Footes Lane.
For those unable to make the journey to Guernsey, the fixture will be live-streamed in the CoinShares Park pavilion tomorrow.
Jersey Women to face Guernsey [1-15]: Nicole Rodrigues-Ferreira, Lucy Hart, Holly Bertram, Willow Le Luan, Abbie Syvret (vc), Seren Coombs, Katie de la Cloche (c), Kerry Bertram, Ashing Magner (vc), Laura Turpin, Saskia Martins, Emily Hart, Taye Boakye-Yiadom, Claudia McGuigan, Kim Hacquoil. Replacements: Hannah Le Moignan, Emilie Langlands, Ella Vieira, Andi Vaughan, Nancy Portsmouth, Georgina Ruellan, Tina Davies. Travelling Reserves: Kim Vallance, Bethan Hughes.
