As the team had a cross border mix it was decided to compete under the name Shamrock Sizzlers and this was embraced with much enthusiasm across the pond.  Indeed much interest was shown from the local press and radio stations about the make-up of the squad and several players were interviewed at various stages of the tournament and were congratulated on not only being excellent ambassadors for their own clubs, but also for Ireland as a whole.

The 100-team tournament kicked off on Friday, August 3rd with women’s U19 games and Senior Men’s games taking place in Lake Placid, with the Women’s social division competition kicking off the following day, Saturday August 4th, and featured 13 teams split into four pools.

The Sizzlers had a very early start with an 8 a.m. encounter against the tournament hosts, The Mountaineers, but came out on top with a 22-0 victory. Martina Boyd scored two tries, and Marcella McGovern and Carol Staunton chipped in with one each to lead the Shamrocks to victory.  Boyd’s tries came in the first half, when she punched the ball into the right side of the goal area seven minutes into the contest and duplicated the feat in the waning minutes to give the Sizzlers a 10-0 advantage at half-time.  “The game featured hard, clean play and both teams were up for it”, said Corinna Power, a senior member of the Sizzlers.  “Our game plan was to get the ball out to our backs and not get sucked into the middle of the field. They were bigger and stronger in the rucks and mauls, but we managed to hold our own, and fortunately we were able to get the ball out and make use of the space”, she added.

In the second half, McGovern upped the Shamrock lead to 15-0 with a try on five-minutes.  Staunton’s try in the final moments of the contest closed out the scoring and sent the Mountaineers into the consolation bracket.

”The penalties just killed us”, said Mountaineer veteran Stacey Annis. “The Shamrocks are a very strong team and they managed to come through when they needed to. They have a bunch of medium-sized players, so they were able to play the game at a full pace. When we did get to them it took two or three of our players to bring them down.  In the rucks and mauls we played well, but they were able to get the ball out to their backs”, she continued. 

With the first win under their belts, the Sizzlers, who had started the tournament as underdogs, were turning a few heads and gaining quite a few extra supporters. Having received the invitation to compete in the tournament from the Mountaineers, support was soon forthcoming from all sections of the host club, even though the Irish team had defeated the Saranac Lake women in the first game. This support was greatly accepted and as the tournament progressed more and more Irish support appeared along the sidelines.

The second pool game against the Rochester Renegades was a much more evenly matched affair with neither side giving an inch.  Playing in the soaring mid day temperatures did not seem to affect the Sizzlers as much as the Renegades who looked to be wilting in the heat as the match reached full-time.  Due to the nature of the competition a winner had to be found so the game went into sudden death extra time with the first score to be posted earning their side the victory.

Straight onto the offensive, the Sizzlers met the challenge head-on and drove the ball up the pitch.  It was nail-biting time for the cocktail of supporters on the sidelines but eventually winger Stephanie Smith broke through on the blind side and posted the winning score for the Irish.  This guaranteed the Shamrocks a place in the Championship semi-finals the following day.

The Shamrocks, who were now determined to make it into the finals, had another early, but welcome start in the cooler morning.  At this stage of the competition the stronger teams were coming to the fore and the semi-final opponents showed the same determination as both teams battled it out in the set pieces, and it was the Lost Lady Lions who put the first points on the board, close to half time with a well worked try from the middle of the pitch.

Taking stock at half time, tour captain Martina Boyd rallied her troops and not wanting to go out of the competition without a huge final effort the team pinned the Lions in their own half and searched for that elusive score.  With not long left on the clock it was Carol Staunton who finally crossed the line, and with the weight of a place in the finals firmly on relative newcomer Leona Houston, you could hear a pin drop across the fields as the ball sailed through the posts and the sidelines erupted into ecstatic cheering.

There was only an hour’s break before the Championship final kicked off against an extremely experienced Old Girls outfit.  Featuring a handful of ex-USA Eagle Internationals it wasn’t hard to see why this team had never been beaten in their run of tournaments across the States.  Slightly shell shocked in the first half the Shamrocks quickly conceded the scores that would give them a massive task to chase in the second half. But in true Enniskillen Ladies spirit the entire team rose to the challenge and slowed the Old Girls down and gave them a run for their money.

The Sizzlers were close to scoring on several occasions but it was not to be and the final score of 20-0 meant they finished the tournament as runners-up.

After a few days rest (!) it was off to Ottawa to play the final game of the tour against the Ottawa Indians on Thursday, August 9th.  Carrying a few knocks the Shamrocks were again slow to get going, allowing the Indians to break through the defence and get in for the first try, but it was to be their last, as any holes in the defence were quickly closed and the forward pack worked hard to set up a good attacking platform for the backs.  Carol Staunton again proved her worth as she crashed through the Ottawa defence for an equalising score under the posts, which was converted by Leona Houston to put the Shamrocks into the lead.

The Indians pushed hard to get back on top but it was Alison Lappin who crossed the line close to the final whistle to give the Irish side a well earned victory in Canada.

An excellent display all round, dropping only one game. The entire squad and supporters were delighted with their performance in this their first international tour and would like to thank everyone who made it possible, especially the businesses who sponsored kit and the tour book, and to all in Saranac Lake whose hospitality was second to none.

Results

Can-Am Tournament
Saranac Lake, New York State, USA

Pool Matches - Sat 4th August
8 a.m. - Mountaineers (0) v Shamrock Sizzlers (22)
Try Scorers: Martina Boyd 2, Marcella McGovern 1, Carol Staunton 1
Conversions: Leona Houston 1

12 p.m. - Rochester Renegades (0) v Shamrock Sizzlers (5) (in extra time)
Try Scorer: Stephanie Smith 1

Semi-Final - Sun 5th August
Lost Lady Lions (5) v Shamrock Sizzlers (7)

Try Scorer: Carol Staunton 1
Conversion: Leona Houston 1

Final - Sun 5th August
11am - Old Girls (20) v Shamrock Sizzlers (0)

Ottawa, Canada

Thursday 9th August
Ottawa Indians (5) v Shamrock Sizzlers (12)
Try Scorers: Carol Staunton 1,  Alison Lappin 1;
Conversions: Leona Houston 1