Gloucester-Hartpury 36-20 Bristol Bears: Five try win sends Circus to third successive PWR final
Yesterday at 05:52 AM
By Matt Priest
The back to back champions defeat last year's runners up in a thrilling encounter at Queensholm to reach the PWR final for the third time in as many seasons.
The game started off slowly with both sides trying to find their feet in the first five minutes, Bristol had the first real chance of the game when a brilliant kick chase caught Gloucester-Hartpury full back Emma sing off guard and led to the Bears attacking into The Circus's defensive third however a sublime kick by Mo Hunt relieved the pressure on the hosts.
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Lark Atkin-Davies opened the scoring for the Bears after an offside penalty provided last year's league runners up with a lineout on the five metre line and a driving maul powered through the Gloucester-Hartpury defence 15 minutes into the semi-final. Holly Aitchison missed her first kick of the afternoon giving the visitors a 5-0 lead.
The Bears maul proved too much for the hosts once again as they got their second try of the game in the 25th minute, in what was a carbon copy of their first try with hooker Atkin-Davies getting her second just ten minutes after her first. Aitchison missed from the tee once again putting Bristol up 10-0.
It did not take long for the back to back PWR champions to bite into the deficit with El Perry driving over the line 28 minutes in to half Bristol's lead. Sing missed her first attempt at the extras.
A strong set of phases from The Circus five minutes before half overstretched the Bears defence giving Sarah Beckett an easy put down in the corner for the hosts second try of the game. Sing made up for her earlier miss off the tee with a lovely nudge to put the back-to-back champions in front for the first time in the match.
The visitors were reduced to 14 after Evie Gallagher was sent to the bin just before half, with the resulting penalty setting Gloucester-Hartpury up with an attacking lineout on the brink of half time. The player advantage was immediately capitalised on and Sing dived over the line, the full back converted her own score to put the hosts up by nine points at the half.
HALF TIME: GLOUCESTER-HARTPURY 19-10 BRISTOL BEARS
It only took six minutes for the 14 player visitors to open the second half scoring, a powerful run by Simi Pam split open the hosts defence and some skilful hands play allowed for one of the PWR's biggest superstars Ilona Maher to touchdown over the try line. Aitchison once again missed from the tee putting the score at 19-15 to Gloucester-Hartpury.
Zoe Aldcroft got The Circus's fourth try of the match just before the hour mark after Pip Hendy's superb run put Gloucester-Hartpury within five metres of the Bears line, and a couple of well worked phases over extended the visitors defence allowing the England captain to score under the posts. Sing once more got the extras increasing the hosts lead to eleven.
Bears replacement Millie David scored a contender for try of the season 62 minutes in as she carried two Gloucester-Hartpury defenders over the line and managed to pull off an insane bit of acrobatic skill to put the ball down in the corner. Aitchison missed from the tee again reducing the visitors deficit to six and putting the score at 26-20 with 18 minutes to go.
Gloucester-Hartpury bounced back quickly however with Hannah Jones converting the champions fifth try of the afternoon in the 66th minute. The circus moved 13 points clear as Sing once more converted from the tee, in what has been a superb performance from the full back.
Sing kicked her first penalty of the game 74 minutes in increasing Gloucester-Hartpury's lead to 16 points with just over five minutes remaining.
Attendance: 6,702
Player Of The Match: Zoe Aldcroft
Gloucester-Hartpury
Tries: 5 (Perry 28', Beckett 35', Sing 40', Aldcroft 59', Jones 66')
conversions: 4 (Sing 35' 40' 58' 66')
penalties: 1 (Sing 74')
yellow cards: 0
red cards: 0
15. Emma Sing 14. Mia Venner 13. Hannah Jones 12. Tatyana Heard (74') 11. Pip Hendy 10. Lleucu George (74') 9. Natasha "Mo" Hunt (co-captain) ( 76') 1. El Perry (51') 2. Neve Jones (76') 3. Maud Muir (40') 4. Sarah Beckett 5. Zoe Aldcroft (co-captain) 6. Kate Williams (76')7. Bethan Lewis (50') 8. Alex Matthews
Replacements
16. Gillian Boag (76') 17. Mackenzie Carson (51') 18. Kathryn Buggy (40') 19. Steph Else (76') 20. Georgia Brock (50') 21. Meg Davies (76') 22. Millie Hyett (74') 23. Rachel Lund (74')
Bristol Bears
Tries: 4 (Atkin-Davies 15' 25', Maher 46', David 62', )
Conversions: 0
Penalties: 0
Yellow cards: 1 ( Gallagher 39')
Red cards: 0
15. Courtney Keight 14. Jasmine Joyce-Butchers 13. Pheobe Murray 12. Amber Reed (co-captain) (58', 68') 11. Ilona Maher (50') 10. Holly Aitchison 9. Keira Bevan (77') 1. Hannah Botterman (50') 2. Lark Atkin-Davies (77') 3. Sarah Bern (77') 4. Hollie Cunningham (58') 5. Abbie Ward (co-captain) 6. Alisha Joyce-Butchers 7. Christiana Balogun (40') 8. Eve Gallagher
Replacements
16. Holly Phillips (77') 17. Simi Pam (40') 18. Eilliann Clarke (60', 77') 19. Delaney Burns (58') 20. Row Marston-Mulhearn (50')21. Ffion Lewis (77') 22. Meg Varley (58') 23. Millie David (50')
Gloucester-Hartpury Player ratings
1. El Perry: 7/10 – The loosehead prop had a strong performance today with a score to top off all the hard work she put in round the breakdown. She was a force to be reckoned with today and constantly got the best of her opposite number.
2. Neve Jones : 4/10- The hooker went under the radar today; she was outclassed by her opposite number but was decent from the lineout and her set piece play was ok.
3. Maud Muir: 5/10– Muir only played the first half of the match but she had a good 40 minute display, her biggest run was called back for an earlier infringement against the hosts but she was solid around the breakdown.
4. Sarah Beckett: 7/10 – Beckett commanded the line out well and was rewarded with a score to match her sublime effort around the breakdown. The lock had a solid performance this semi final which matches her run of form this season.
5. Zoe Aldcroft : 8/10– The England captain led from the front today, got herself on the scoresheet and led her team well. Strong carries and even stronger clear outs showed why she is captain for club and country.
6. Kate Williams : 5/10– Williams had a decent afternoon, she put in a hard working performance all match and deserves to keep her starting spot for the final.
7. Bethan Lewis : 6/10 – Lewis was a menace in the ruck today, she won a couple of turnovers and forced a few errors. A 6 feels harsh but she was taken off with half an hour still to play.
8. Alex Matthews: 7/10 – The number 8 helped steady the ship when her team were chasing, she had a series of strong line breaks and picked off from the back of the scrum and made metres every single time. A vintage attacking performance.
9. Natasha "Mo" Hunt: 8/10 – The Gloucester-Hartpury scrum half controlled the tempo well throughout she had a few good breaks herself and her ball distribution set her team up superbly on attack.
10. Lleucu George: 6/10– George spread the ball well today, had a real zip on her passes and set up some good passages of play for her centres.
11. Pip Hendy: 6/10– Hendy might not have got herself on the score sheet but she deserved too, she had her fair share of strong carries and had the Bristol defence back pedaling every time she touched the ball, a good afternoon for the winger.
12. Tatyana Heard: 5/10– Heard made some solid runs and punished with her tackles. A couple of times she was caught out of position however which lead to Bristol bears.
13. Hannah Jones : 7/10– The outside centre was solid in defence constantly rushing up and forcing mistakes from the Bristol backs and limiting the chances their dangerous wingers had.
14. Mia Verner : 6/10 – Verner had the exact same story as Hendy today, did not get on the score sheet but they definitely deserved too. Her thunderous runs led to the attack that provided the winning try for the hosts.
15. Emma Sing: 9/10– The fullback was the best player on the pitch today, got herself on the score sheet, had a good day from the tee and made a pair of try saving tackles as well. She has been superb for Gloucester-Hartpury from the first match of the season all the way to today a cracking young player and has a wonderful career ahead of her.
Replacements: 6/10 – All 8 of Gloucester-Hartpury's replacements had a strong showing off of the bench, they stepped up well and didn't let the speed or tempo get too much for them.
Talking points: Gloucester-Hartpury 36-20 Bristol Bears Women
The three peat is on!- The reigning back-to-back champions are in the perfect place to make even more history as their 36-20 win today sees them face Saracens at the stonex stadium in the PWR final. It has been an unbelievable season for The Circus and the west country side look to become the first side to win three straight PWR titles.
Super Sing- Emma Sing is quickly becoming one of the best players in the league. The 23 year old has six caps for England already and deserves so many more. She was the best player on the pitch today. Her kicking is excellent, her step is outstanding and her defensive work is unbelievable, there is a bright future ahead for the fullback and Gloucester-Hartpury will be doing their best to keep her at Queensholm.
The next generation of female coaches- It was announced yesterday that Susie Appleby and Exeter chiefs have parted ways. With Appleby's departure the PWR has now lost three female head coaches this season. Bristol head coach Dave Ward believes that the next generation are coming through quickly. "Bristol are doing lots at the moment, I am mentoring Amber Reed with Tom and Luke through her university studies. All these young professional rugby players coming through now are going to be the next generation of PWR coaches but we are just not there yet."
Bristol's league form harming their playoff push- Bristol had a couple of close calls this season and may have missed the playoffs if these calls went the other way. Head coach Dave Ward states he would have liked to see Bristol "sprint into the playoffs, although we gave it a good shot today, Gloucester deserved it." It's clear to see that Bears late season form may have been their downfall today and something Ward and co will be looking to improve for next season.
Ilona Maher's impact- It may have been Maher's last game for Bristol but her impact on the PWR and women's rugby is substantial. She is an absolute role model for young girls all around the country and her mark on English rugby has led to increased viewing figures both in the stadiums and watching at home. Her short trip across the pond may not have resulted in league victory but the legacy it has set is the biggest victory.
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