IN a nail-biting thriller, the Army women’s rugby side overpowered Police and handed them a 12-10 defeat as part of the Vodafone Ratu Sukuna Bowl Competition at the HFC Bank Stadium in Suva yesterday.

Army emerged victorious after a captivating game where both teams advanced strong performances in front of a roaring audience that turned the stadium into a sea of red and blue.

The match’s final moments came in the form of a penalty kick for Army, which became successful as it charged through the goalpost to seal the win.

The team captain, Taina Toga was in celebratory spirits after the match, and explained their aim in the opening moments of the match was to kick start with a bang however the intensity of the match turned their mind to other plans.

“Actually, we started off late, we were supposed to start with a bang, we lost on our defense, and everyone was just lazy on defense, but we managed to hold our opposition till the last whistle,” Toga stated.

For her side, their preparation for the Ratu Sukuna Bowl was boosted with the inclusion of players in the Fijiana XV and Drua teams, and players in the high-performance unit program (HPU).

Toga mentioned the team had faced issues with having the team together, since some players would be deployed on missions overseas with the RFMF.

With the team walking away with their winning spoils, the captain thanked their supporters, families and fellow military officers for their support.