Crookwell's Jayde Della and Annie Croker played crucial roles in today's representative match between the George Tooke Shield and Woodbridge Cup League Tag sides, as the former romped to a 48-10 victory.
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Conditions were far from perfect at Harden's McLean Oval, where a bitter breeze swept across the field and the ground was damp underfoot, but that did not stop Croker and Della from making their mark for GTS.
Della, playing at prop, powered her way over the sidelines with two tries in the first half. Croker, meanwhile, made the most of her slight frame and rapid speed to gain invaluable metres up the wing.
With the wind at their backs in the first half, the GTS team put on a display in front of its home crowd to lead 32-4 at half time.
In the second half, against the wind, the going was harder as the Woodbridge Cup team found its feet and began routinely making inroads into GTS's defensive half.
However, their defenders stood firm, thanks to superior fitness and speed across the ground, the GTS players scored three more tries in the second half and conceded only one.
Both Della and Croker were pleased with the win after the game, but were also surprised at how quickly the team had gelled with just one training session under its belt.
"It's awesome when you're on a rep level and you have the good players in the team, and they all know what their position is and what they have to do," Croker said.
"That just makes it easier for the rest of the team. If everyone does their job individually, we all come together."
Both players, who will now return to the Crookwell She Devils, are eager to pass on their experience to their local teammates.
"We can bring back some of the little things, work on those at training, and put them into our game," Croker said.
"Just the plays and doing the little things right like marking up, talking to each other, communication, those one-percenters."
Following the match, GTS captain Emma James was presented with the newly-commissioned League Tag Challenge trophy.
After the success of the first such representative match in more than 20 years, there is talk of making the event an annual fixture.
To accommodate the players missing from the GTS teams this weekend, a bye round was scheduled for all sides. The competition will resume next Saturday, May 22.
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