Flavell takes positives as Caithness Krakens lose out to no-frills Peterhead
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The Krakens came crashing down from the high of a third successive win to experience a crushing defeat on the north-east coast on Saturday.
The Caithness squad travelled to Peterhead on the back of their 29-24 win over Stornoway which put them third in the Caledonia North Women's Region League.
But the absence of half a dozen of their most experienced campaigners meant the winning run came to a shuddering halt.
Their 61-7 loss was not without positives for coach Mike Flavell.
Beforehand he had been under no illusions about the size of the task they faced, and he was impressed by how the team battled to the end. The coach is confident they will regroup and recover for their final league match, at home to leaders Shetland.
Peterhead, who revived their women's team five years ago, had recorded just one previous win this season.
But it was apparent from early that the size advantage of the hosts, in the scrum and behind it, would be a telling factor.
Flavell said: "They played a very physical style of rugby. It was no frills – the centre would take it up and it would be a series of one-out hit-ups until we ran out of defenders.
"But credit to our girls for battling hard and making them work for their scores."
A number playing out of position did not help the cause of the visitors, who included Dundee-based exile Stephanie Craig and three guests from Aberdeen, Moray and Garioch.
Caithness briefly stemmed the onslaught when they scored a cracking try on the half-hour mark.
From a lineout, the ball was worked wide before being flipped back inside for Devon Stuart to romp to the line. Megan Douglas converted to reduce the deficit to 20-7.
But Peterhead's fifth try before the interval quickly re-established their whip hand and they ran in six more in the second half.
Flavell said of his team: "They never stopped trying – there were no white flags. They stuck to the process and tried to play the game that we wanted to play.
"You have to remember most of the squad have only played a handful of games and the longer Saturday's game went on, the more they adapted to the physical side.
"Most put in more tackles than they have done in all their previous games. They have learned a lot more about the game and I've learned more about them."
It gets no easier, with Shetland now preparing to head to Thurso looking for a win that would clinch the title for them.
Any slip-up and they could be pipped if Orkney Dragons score a bonus-point win in their final match in Peterhead on Saturday.
Flavell is more concerned about the Krakens putting on a decent display and ideally harvesting the single point they need to pip Craig Dunain for third spot.
The Shetland match was scheduled for Saturday but that has been scuppered following a Covid outbreak in the Caithness squad. It has been rearranged for February 12.
Shetland kept up their 100 per cent record with a 22-0 victory at home to Aberdeen Quines.
In the other games, the Dragons thumped Fraserburgh 53-18 in Kirkwall while Craig Dunain defeated Stornoway 27-8 in Inverness.
