As expected, the Exiles Ladies have finished among the bridesmaids in rygby’s Danish Championship for women, but can look forward to the 2013 campaign with confidence following a late-season revival that saw several debutants impress.

Heading into the final round of games, the Exiles, who finished fourth in the championship well behind winners Frederiksberg, only had friendlies remaining. Still, there was nothing friendly about their build-up: pitted against hosts Speed (second) and Grenå (third), they had a point to prove!

However, in the end, Speed’s home advantage proved to be telling. A two-try burst in the opening 90 seconds put Speed in a lead that they were able to maintain, and despite two tries from Sophie Rosgaard and a try by Becky Jensen disallowed due to an obstruction by Kirstine Liedecke that was unseen by everyone bar the referee, they eased their way to a comfortable win.

While Speed went off to play Frederiksberg in the championship-deciding game, Exiles faced Grenå in the unofficial ‘bronze medal’ match. It has to be conceded that Grenå were blooding several new players and actually asked Exiles to bear this in mind – literal bloodings are best avoided! And it surprised few when the Exiles raced into a quick lead. Rosgaard added to her two earlier tries, but was trumped by Linda McLean, who scored four – an accomplishment that carries with it the forfeit of buying her team two cases of beer.

The game saw the welcome return of Annie ‘Mini’ Lysebjerg, who has been out for over a year. Her return, and the addition of some pretty promising players, bodes well for next season. The beginning of the season, when the team was coachless and short on players, seems like a long time ago. Roll on 2013!