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| England A 12 Nomads 10 by Julia Hutton 09/02/10
England A Women recorded their first win over the Nomads for the first time in three years on Sunday at Esher RFC with a well earned 12-10 victory.
The Nomads, the men's game equivalent of the Barbarians, cherry picked a side brimming with former international players including ex-England captain Sue Day and England's Selena Rudge and Shelley Rae but their years of experience couldn't halt the determined England side.
England A Head Coach Mike Barnett said: "This was a really tough game and it was really close. We created lots of chances but the disappointing thing was that we didn't finish off all of them or get all the points we deserved.
"Even so, we kept battling until the end and there were some great individual performances. We are now looking forward to our next game against Spain on Sunday where we'll have a chance to try and cut out the errors and turn these opportunities into points. This was a good start to our season and is a great platform for us now to build on."
The first half of the game was a dogged affair with both sides battling it out. Neither side asserted dominance but were successful in defence in a very physical first half hour.
England's patience paid off though and some good attacking work from Georgina Roberts and Fran Matthew saw the ball moved quickly through the backs to the opposite wing. The forwards then took it on and Worcester prop Laura Keates managed to cross in the corner. Centre Abigail Chamberlain missed the conversion.
The Nomads clawed back to 5-5 at the break after a period of concerted pressure on England's line. The pressure paid off with Elisha Dee driving over the line to beat England's defence.
After the half time team talk England took control of the game and piled the pressure on the Nomads. After some excellent moves from the backs, then a well worked line-out, the ball was taken through the midfield and Matthews cruised in to score under the posts. This time Chamberlain converted to take England into a 12-5 lead.
England continued to apply the pressure but eventually the Nomads turned the tables and put pressure on England's line instead and after several phases of play Henrietta Hegberg crossed in the corner. With Rae missing the vital conversion with five minutes to go England took the 12-10 victory.
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| England 31 Wales 0 by Julia Hutton 09/02/10
England Women opened their RBS 6 Nations championship campaign tonight (Saturday) with an impressive 31-0 victory over Wales, which included five tries for the home side.
And in securing the emphatic win at Esher RFC Gary Street's side also avenged the loss they suffered to Wales a year ago. England now travel to Italy in seven days time aiming to continue their winning run and defend their Six Nations title for a fifth successive year.
Worcester duo Heather Fisher and Kat Merchant, Lichfield's Emily Scarratt, Darlington Mowden Park Sharks' Katy McLean and Team Northumbria's Rochelle Clark all touched down for tries.
Street said: "I'm very satisfied with this win. It's certainly a good way to start the championship. As always we do all our talking on the pitch and although we were a little rusty because of the winter break we secured a good win against the second best side in Europe. We just had too much power and pace for them and that was a good way to put an end to the gremlins of losing to Wales last season."
England's supporters didn't have to wait long for the action to begin with the home side on the score board after just four minutes. Worcester's Fisher was clearly carrying her impressive form from the November international tests against New Zealand into the Six Nations series, with an impressive evening which saw her touch down for her first ever try.
The explosive flanker showed great support and patience to take on the ball after a great break by Scarratt when she was taken out. Fisher then showed her pace to force her way over the line. Katy McLean couldn't add the conversion.
England sustained the attacking pressure and Wales failed to make many breaks into the home side's territory, but they were dogged in defence and England had to wait until the 27th minute to get another score on the board.
Some great hits by England's forwards forced the turn-over and the ball was then recycled out to the backs with Rachael Burford and Scarratt taking it on. Merchant this time was in support and took it on to score England's second try. McLean missed the conversion.
Wales remained defiant and although they lost Catrina Nicholas to the sin bin, they kept England at bay until the 44th minute when Scarratt used her speed and strength to cut through the midfield and touch down for the third try. This time McLean converted, handing England a 17-0 lead at half-time.
The one way traffic continued after the restart and England dominated possession and territory. Wales's full back Non Evans missed the visitors' only real chance of points when she failed with a penalty attempt and Wales' evening went from bad to worse losing another player to the sin-bin.
Wales were however let off the hook for a while with England failing to convert the pressure into points as they failed to execute some of their moves. A rush of substitutions proved fruitful though with the likes of Clark, Alice Richardson and Tamara Taylor adding something extra to England's game.
On 63 minutes England cruised into a 24-0 lead with vice captain McLean also scoring her first try for England. Winger Fiona Pocock made a lightening break but a crunching tackle took her out of the equation but Scarratt kept the momentum going. McLean was in support and she took the ball on to dart across field and score. McLean then converted her own try.
Clark, returning for England for the first time since the Nations Cup last summer, then rounded off an impressive return when hooker Sam Reeve took a quick tap penalty deep in Wales' 22 to set up Clark, who muscled her way over the line with ease. McLean again added the conversion, handing the home side the 31-0 victory. |
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| SCOTLAND WOMEN VICTORIOUS OVER FRENCH | | |
Sunday, 07 February 2010 | Scotland Women kicked off their 2010 Six Nations campaign in style, beating France Women 10-8 this evening (6 February) with a courageous performance in challenging conditions. Swirling mist and rain at Lasswade didn't dampen the spirits of the vociferous crowd that cheered the home team to victory with a 79th-minute winner by player of the match, Lucy Millard. Sporting a team ranging from debut cap Celia Hawthorn to Veronica Fitzpatrick (50 caps) and Donna Kennedy (103 caps), the side saw off the French challenge with a great display of running rugby. 
Led on to the field by Veronica Fitzpatrick, celebrating her 50th cap, it was the French who set the early pace, kicking to the corner. The linout was won by Scotland but the ball turned over and carried across the line by Stephanie Loyer. The conversion was wide of the posts. (4 minutes) France drove deep into Scotland's territoty but the ball was retrieved and kick away by Lucy Millard. A lineout for the Scots at the 5m mark signalled a frantic run of play in the French half; when the ball did stray theother side of the line, it was scooped up and kicked and chased at speed by Celia Hawthorn. A break by the French number 10, Aurelie Bailon, was foiled by her opposite number and forced back into the visitors' 22. Heading towards the half hour, France maintained the pressure and won a penalty at 38 minutes, though the kick was wide. Half time: Scotland Women 0 - 5 France Women Despite a slow start to the second half, the Scots surprised the opposition with a bolt-of-lighting break from Lucy Millard who headed off on a solo stormer to cross in the corner. The conversion went wide of the uprights. Now level pegging, France pressed forward and a fluried period of action form both sides resulted in a batch of substitutions. France were awarded another penalty at 57 minutes which duly went over the bar; 5-8. Louise Moffat replied with a promising break, extended by Celia Hawthorn, though the debutant was stoppd in her tracks. Just after nine, the mist at last began to lift and the crowd (488) raised their game accordingly. A fumbled French pass rolled ominously toward the line, hounded by the Scottish pack. A scrum followed just metres from the line, by the uprights, with a quick ball passed wide to Lucy Millard who drove across the line (79 minutes). 
The conversion was wide; the final whistle pierced the air;the score read Scotland Women 10 - 8 France Women. Head coach Gary Parker was overjoyed with the team performance;"The team played smart rugby, worked hard in the kicking game and the girls battled throughout. We shouldn't underestimate how great this result is. "We haven't been able to play much in the last six weeks (due to the weather) but we've showed we can really compete and we can put up a fight. "The crowd was brilliant. We're all delighted and now we have to move forward." |
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| IRELAND WOMEN 22 ITALY WOMEN 5 by Kevin West
Full-back Niamh Briggs hit an early drop goal and industrious number 8 Joy Neville powered over for a try to make it 8-0 for half-time.
Neville's second try on 48 minutes, converted brilliantly from the touchline by Briggs, and a debut score for winger Alison Miller confirmed Ireland as winners before Italian replacement Silvia Peron struck late for a consolation try.
These are interesting times for Women’s rugby in Ireland, and this RBS 6 Nations opening success provided further encouragement for Kevin West’s well-drilled squad.
A committed and discipline display that married substance with style ensured Ireland, who had four new caps on from the start, emerged as convincing winners - in the end - over their Italian counterparts.
The hosts, with a nice blend of youth and experience, were anxious to make a positive start against an eager Italy side and that is exactly what occurred.
Showing a real willingness to move the ball wide, Ireland's play was clever, and Italy struggled with the home team's purposeful opening.
Joanne O'Sullivan was impressing at out-half, and the girls in green took the lead in the 12th minute courtesy of a sweetly-struck drop goal from Briggs.
That score gave Ireland a deserved advantage, but they were then pinned back for vast chunks of the first half as Italy caused plenty of problems.
Indeed, Ireland were fortunate not to concede in the 23rd minute when a blistering Italian move came within a whisker of a try, but experienced scrum half Tania Rosser prevented winger Sara Barattin from crossing the line.
Rosser was sin-binned for the challenge and Ireland continued to encounter bother during the next 10 minutes, but they remained defiant and crucially did not allow the Italians to register a score in the spell.
Then, just as Rosser returned to the fray, Ireland pinched the evening's first try three minutes before the break. A well-rehearsed lineout play ended with former team captain Neville scampering over to edge Ireland 8-0 ahead at the interval.
Buoyed by the way in which they had remained so cool under pressure, West’s charges grabbed another try in the 48th minute. Inevitably, Neville was involved, supplying an opportunistic close range dash over the line before Briggs nailed the conversion from an acute angle.
O'Sullivan and Briggs created a third try for Connacht flyer Miller in the 63rd minute as Ireland remained on the front foot.
The Italians, who were beaten 35-17 by Ireland last year, scored an injury-time consolation try courtesy of replacement Peron, but it failed to take the gloss off what was an encouraging start to the Championship for Ireland.
IRELAND WOMEN: Niamh Briggs; Nora Stapleton, Grace Davitt, Shannon Houston, Alison Miller; Joanne O'Sullivan, Tania Rosser; Fiona Coghlan (capt), Chris Fanning, Emer McManamly, Kate O'Loughlin, Marie Louise Reilly, Carol Staunton, Claire Molloy, Joy Neville.
Replacements used: Caroline Mahon for O'Loughlin (71 mins), Louise Beamish for Rosser, Louise Austin for Coghlan (both 75), Eliza Downey for Stapleton (77 mins). Not used: Gillian Bourke, Lauren Day, Helen Brosnan.
ITALY WOMEN: Manuela Furlan; Sara Barattin, Maria Grazia Cioffi, Paola Zangirolami (capt), Maria Diletta Veronese; Michela Tondinelli, Valentina Schiavon; Lucia Gai, Michela Este, Elisa Cucchiella, Sara Pettinelli, Flavia Severin, Giuliana Campanella, Silvia Gaudino, Daniela Gini.
Replacements used: Cecilia Zublena for Severin (68 mins), Silvia Peron for Gai (75). Not used: Germana Raponi, Alice Trevisan, Elisa Rochas, Chiara Buongiorno, Valentina Virgili.
Referee: Sarah Corrigan (Australia) |
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