Exeter Chiefs Women v Bristol Bears Women

Exeter Chiefs Women scored nine tries in the sun against Bristol Bears Women to cement their position in the top four of the PWR.

There were two tries apiece for Claudia Moloney-MacDonald, Flo Robinson and Francesca Granzotto with Maisy Allen, Hope Rogers and Sabrina Poulin scoring the remainder while Bristol could only reply with one.

First points on the board went to Claudia Moloney-MacDonald. The England winger was always eyeing that interception, and it came good as she raced through the gap having collected a pass meant for Reneeqa Bonner.

A penalty for Chiefs was kicked to touch by centre Alex Tessier for a lineout inside Bristol’s 22 but the game was halted for a free tap. Cliodhna Moloney-MacDonald was almost over the line but as the ball was recycled, it went forward and a scrum awarded to Bristol.

Having taken a Bristol scrum against the head minutes earlier, Chiefs applied the pressure once again and were awarded the penalty for their efforts. Chiefs’ hooker Moloney-MacDonald was nearly over again from another quick tap but Hope Rogers was held up in the next move.

Chiefs continued to press with No 8 DaLeaka Menin showing her powerful pace in the loose, however, as the ball came back towards the wing, Claudia Moloney-MacDonald just ran out of space on the left wing with the tryline begging.

There was no need to worry though as Chiefs made the most of their extended stay in Bristol's 22 with flanker Maisy Allen racking up another try for the season as the home side ran out of defenders on the left side.

But then on the half-hour mark, Bonner evaded Claudia Moloney-MacDonald's grasp to score Bristol's first try. It went unconverted though to leave the score at 5-14.

A Chiefs scrum following a Millie David knock-on gave Menin another chance to gallop downfield. Her fellow forwards – Dorothy Wall, Linde van der Velden and Amy Rule – also got involved to get back into Bristol’s 22. Another scrum applied more pressure on a waning Bristol side with Player of the Match Flo Robinson on hand to pop over the bodies on the line to score.

As the injury time ticked on for the first half, Chiefs were awarded a penalty on Bristol’s 22. This time the lineout worked a treat with the visitors recycling the ball to the centre of the pitch for Robinson to score her second and collect the team’s try bonus point. Tessier continued her first half kicking clean sheet with her fourth conversion.

The second half must have felt relentless for Bristol Bears as Chiefs continued to pile on the pressure and the points. A lineout gave them the platform they needed to release the backs into space. Claudia Moloney-MacDonald simply cut through the defence to go under the posts for her second.

It then looked like Flo Robinson was going to get her hat-trick after a stunning run from centre Nancy McGillivray. The ball fell into Bristol hands but a pass bounced off Cliodhna Moloney-MacDonald and was collected by prop Hope Rogers to burrow over.

The game continued to build in Chiefs favour, even when the coaches started to empty the bench. Francesca Granzotto had only been on the pitch for three minutes before she slipped through Bristol's defence for Chiefs seventh try.

While Menin may have stolen a few headlines with her switch to No 8, Merryn Elworthy was also in strange territory at fly-half but her sweet kick to find Sabrina Poulin meant the Canadian could scamper over the line for the try she had been pressing to score throughout the game.

Elworthy’s scorching run was also the catalyst that gave Granzotto the space to score as the game entered its final 10 minutes.

Job done from the Chiefs Women with an impressive win to give them a platform to build on as they reach the final games of the season.