Warlingham Wildcards, the club’s Touch team, took a big stride forward in their development as a competitive team last Saturday by playing the crème de la crème in a regional tournament, writes team Head Coach Craig Aldridge.

Since their establishment in December 2022 the Wildcards has always had a focus on inclusivity; encouraging both men and women to participate regardless of experience, and enjoying the social activity a mixed group can bring; training and playing every Wednesday night (come rain or shine), monthly barbeques, games nights, cross-club themed evenings, or just having a few drinks after training. The team has also toured every year on the continent, attending tournaments in Spain and Portugal for the past three years, with the emphasis always being on fun and team cohesion.

The team always harboured ambitions to be more than a social touch team, to test themselves at a higher level, and this past weekend, they achieved that. By entering the South East Development Series (SEDS) the Wildcards were pitching themselves against some of the best teams in the region. It’s worth mentioning that the use of the word “development” is a bit of a misnomer, with many teams boasting many internationally recognised players!

The Wildcards set themselves realistic expectations; winning was never the objective. This would be the first time the team was facing opponents of this calibre, and the first time they would be playing in matches of this length. This was also the first tournament that they had entered since Portugal last summer so it would be fair to say that they were a little tournament rusty - remaining competitive was the aim.

The rustiness was apparent in the first two games against London Eagles Black and Triple Threat. Although in attack the team kept good shape, their defensive structure struggled to find its feet, leaving the team exposed to faster teams whose gameplay placed an emphasis on speed. However, despite the defensive issues in open play, the team showed excellent line defence.

The final two games against London Eagles Green and Surrey Bisons were much more competitive affairs. Defence in open play improved significantly, and the attack really started to hum. Both London Eagles Green and Surrey Bisons were surprised to find themselves behind at the end of each first half through focussed defensive discipline and structured attack by the Wildcards! Unfortunately, the length of the games started to take its toll in the latter part of both second halves, and the Wildcards’ open play defence creaked, then eventually broke.

Despite the 0-4 record and areas to work on, the Wildcards had acquitted themselves admirably for their first tournament at this level. While the whole team gave everything to the tournament, there are special mentions for David Griffiths, Rochelle Kwan, Emilio Crispin and Cameron Sharp who truly emptied the tank, and put in some spectacular defensive efforts!

Well done Wildcards and good luck at the next tournament!

All photos: Hayley Sasserath
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