UK Armed Forces Dominant in Opening Victory Over Tonga in IDRC Pool

In the picturesque setting of France, the UK Armed Forces Rugby (UKAF) team kicked off their International Defence Rugby Competition campaign in emphatic style, prevailing 43-14 over a tenacious Tongan side.

UKAF began brightly with Owain Davies narrowly missing an early penalty opportunity to open the scoring. The initial phase of the match was dictated by UKAF, who kept the play predominantly in their own half, exerting pressure on the Tongans.

This pressure paid off when Kieran Forbes found the try line following an astute off-load from Matt Dawson, which set captain Dave Manning into motion. Davies atoned for his earlier miss by converting Forbes’ try, pushing UKAF ahead 7-0.

Forbes, evidently the man of the moment, soon touched down again, extending the lead to 14-0. Laudola added to the tally after a dominant driving maul, although Davies couldn’t add the extras this time.

Discipline started to falter for the Tongans, as they received their first yellow card of the match, leaving them with just 14 men. Taking advantage of the numerical superiority, UKAF capitalised with Cakau darting from a scrum to score another, with Davies duly converting. At half-time, UKAF had established a commanding 26-0 lead.

However, as anticipated, Tonga emerged from the break with renewed vigour. They managed to exert some pressure, which saw Laudola sent to the sin bin, reducing UKAF to 14. Seizing the opportunity, Tonga crossed the white line for their first points, narrowing the deficit to 26-7 after a successful conversion.

Despite the setback, Justin Coleman’s team rallied. Boladau was next to register a try for UKAF, though the conversion was astray. In a moment of brilliance, Williams, a late change to the starting lineup, not only scored but also converted his own try, widening the margin to 38-7.

The encounter wasn’t devoid of controversy. Alex Hayton of UKAF received a yellow card after Tonga capitalised on a penalty advantage. The penalty try awarded to Tonga meant the scoreline read 38-14.

In a heated climax, Tonga’s frustrations boiled over, resulting in a red card for a dangerous high tackle. The final whistle saw UKAF secure a dominant 43-14 win, but the match wasn’t without lessons. Scrum-half Mikey McDonald acknowledged post-match that while the victory was satisfying, there were areas of improvement needed ahead of their next clash.

UKAF now turns their focus to their next challenge against Georgia on 23rd August, followed by their final group stage fixture against Spain on 27th August. Based on today’s performance, the team is surely one to watch in the tournament.