Comeback queens put turmoil behind to win epic

Holyhead Harpies - 1470* vs Falmouth Falcons - 1110

Falcons vs Harpies

	Falcons	Harpies
Keeper	Frobisher	Weatherwax
Chasers	Grinderford (C)	Glossop (C)
	Goodfellow	Gaenor
	Meadows	Birchgrove
Beaters	Bundy	Tolipan
	Wagtail	Goyle
Seeker	Mostafa	Bloch

Two rounds into the 2012 season, the Falcons and Harpies were together on the ladder. They say 7^th and 9^th respectively, each having won one and lost one of their first two matches. If ever there is to be proof that the numbers don’t tell the story, here it is. For Falcons fans, there was tentative hope that an end to their title drought might not too far away, even this year at a stretch. For Harpies fans there was desperate soul searching and the realisation that they may have to prepare themselves for a second straight year of tortuous horror.

Having pushed the Wasps far closer than most pundits expected, Falmouth took an unchanged team into a match they were expected to win emphatically. Holyhead, to their credit, knew the proverbial had hit the fan and action was taken, with no less than four alterations to their starting seven. These changes included the introduction of much-lauded rookie Keeper, Filemina Weatherwax, making her debut just a day after of turning 17.

The changes certainly proved justified and worthwhile, with Beaters Talulah Tolipan and Emmeline Goyle in particular providing fresh vigour. However Falmouth’s consistent and experienced lineup, led by the talismanic Grinderford, still had the early run of play. But the margin stayed modest, thanks largely to the revelatory Weatherwax.

After three hours, with the Falcons leading 360-220, the snitch came into dramatic view, with both Mostafa and Bloch going within inches of ending the game. The prolonged and ultimately unresolved exchange showed that both Seekers were slightly off their game, and that this snitch was a particular nimble one. Such factors suggested a potential for a marathon contest, which few supporters would begrudge with the quality and intensity of play.

This was how it came to pass. For further twelve hours twenty-eight warriors fought with every fibre of their being, momentum toing and froing.

Ironically it was the dumped Harpies who proved to be their stars. Scorned by their rejection from the starting line-up, Lina Griffiths, Generys Gladstone, Glynis Samuels and Rohesia Gibberd all rose to the occasion when required to relieve the spent starters after the six-hour juncture.

Until that point the Falcons looked under control, but in the seventh and eighth hours balance of power shifted palpably towards the ladies in green.

By the time hour twelve was complete and the original line-ups began to be restored, a 230 point deficit had become a 150 point lead.

The return of Grinderford in attack, as well as the defensive fireworks of Cyprian Bundy and Gordon Wagtail, evened the contest back out. But the Harpies momentum was unstoppable had taken them to a decisive advantage, with the lead stabilizing around 200.

As the game clock neared 16 hours, finally mercy prevailed. Zelda Bloch had incredibly left the field for only a single hour, (and that was only when she suffered a minor fall from her broom, overwhelmed by exhaustion after more than nine hours in the saddle). Her wings were clipped and flying lines noticeably shabby, but the precise Bloch eye and mind prevailed over the fading body and she managed to just snatch the snitch in her fingertips.

For the Falcons, such a result was a bitter pill to swallow but still the signs are there. If their minds and bodies can recover with equal clarity, Round 3 should be but a minor blip on a strong season. For the Harpies though, Round 3 is momentous. What could have been an unsalvageable slide into ignominy has likely been saved, and their season campaign is back on track.

Holyhead Harpies - 1470: Glossop 41, Gladstone 37, Gaenor 26, Birchgrove 11, Gallies 11, Barnacle 6. Bloch Capture

Falmouth Falcons - 1110: Grinderford 52, Otterburn 20, Smudgeley 16, Meadows 12, Goodfellow 7, Madley 4

PLAYER OF THE MATCH: TALULAH TOLIPAN (HARPIES)