Scottish Super League – Match Day 2 Review

We’re now two games into the Scottish Super League and the overall picture is starting to take shape. We take a look at the action from match day two and ask the question: Who can stop Skye from winning?

Clyde 16 – 15 Lomond

After suffering defeats in match day one, both teams went into this game knowing that only a win would keep them in the hunt for overall victory. Lomond started brightly, with Audrey Melançon-Fournier and John Tofalis doing what they do best in the deep areas of the field, giving Lomond the initial advantage at 3-1. Clyde failed to get any connections going early in the game, possibly down to fielding five debutants; gifting too many turnovers through sloppy offense and communication errors. Phil Webb grafted in the handler space to keep the engine turning and prevent the score from drifting too far out of reach, but at this point it looked like Clyde were delivering a very similar performance to match day one, hanging in there but never really in the game. Lomond continued to pile on the pressure, scoring with deep throws straight off the pull, protecting their two-point lead and denying Clyde any opportunities to break back early in the game.

Clyde’s renaissance came largely in the form of their female handlers. Hannah Millard offered constant swing options to get the disc flowing and dispelled any fears of a tentative post-concussion performance with an athletic layout (and head-protecting roll) to pick up a stray reset throw. Meanwhile, Flora Girard’s picture-perfect flick hucks wreaked havoc on the Lomond endzone (once her teammates learned to expect them). 

Despite Clyde’s resurgence, Lomond continued to deliver on their own offense points, with Alice Bates putting in the hard yards upfield.

The moment of the game came for all the wrong reasons. Mihael Dimitrov’s huge layout block on the edge of the endzone gave Lomond an opportunity to go three points ahead with ten minutes to play, but unfortunately, the impact caused his shoulder to dislocate, ruling him out of the rest of the match.* Lomond then spurned the chance to break and Clyde gathered the kindling for a perfectly timed hot streak. Will Watt caught fire in the endzone and Clyde reeled off an impressive run of 4 points to 1, taking the lead when it mattered and clinching the match by a single point.

Clyde MVPs: Flora Girard, Will Watt
Lomond MVPs: Mihael Dimitrov, Alice Bates

*His shoulder relocated, he got checked out at the hospital and should make a swift recovery.

Nevis 11 – 14 Skye

This was the battle of the champions from match day one. After Skye’s convincing victory over Clyde and featuring a largely unchanged lineup, the sideline had them clearly pinned as hot favourites. Nevis’s underdog status was probably worthy, given the absence of some key squad members and the fact they were only fielding five male players.

An impressive start from Nevis threatened to rewrite the script, with debutant Sam Finlay making an early impact as a playmaker and Izzy Retout dominating in the deep spaces with her speed. Nevis were first to break, earning an early two-point advantage and giving the crowd cause for excitement.

As the first half progressed, Skye eventually clawed back the lead, with Cal Easton’s deep shots making a difference.

The middle of the game got a little scrappy, allowing James Taylor to collect a handful of run-through blocks for Nevis. Still, the majority of the long points went Skye’s way thanks in part to the calmness of their handlers, Sara Rabaglia in particular putting in an MVP performance.

Nevis had a couple of chances to bring the game back towards the end, but overall it was another comfortable win for Skye.

Skye MVPs: Cal Easton, Sara Rabaglia
Nevis MVPs: Izzy Retout, James Taylor

Has Skye already won the league?

Skye certainly hold a healthy advantage with two wins from two and a goal difference of plus 8. Only Nevis and Clyde can catch them and they will face off against each other in the final week. Nevis are closest in terms of goal difference (Nevis -2, Clyde -4), but an overall swing of at least 11 points seems unlikely. Should there be a tie on GD the result will go to a head-to-head result and Skye already have the upper hand over both of these teams. The saving grace for Clyde and Nevis is the bonus point system. This would allow either team to win by any margin and hope that Lomond can beat Skye by more than five Lomond are currently winless so will be eager to end the league with a victory under their belts. Both of their losses have been extremely close matches so a big performance is not beyond them. Skye have also suffered the loss of star handler Sara Rabaglia, who has returned to Italy. It’s more than likely that Skye will be too strong for any of this to matter, but the neutrals can at least continue to dream of a spectacular finish.