Bears Women 24 Chiefs Women 21
Bristol Bears Women 24
Exeter Chiefs Women 21
James Fowler at Shaftesbury Park
The strains of the Wurzels could be heard far and wide at the full-time whistle, as the Bristol Bears stunned Exeter Chiefs at a boiling hot Shaftesbury Park.
The Bears struck first through their hot-stepping wing Amy Coles, however the Chiefs soon found their stride, with Flo Robinson and Kate Zackary both crossing in quick succession to put the visitors in charge.
Bristol hit back through their Red Roses star Sarah Bern, however the Chiefs made sure they had the final say in the first half with Maisy Allen going over from a strong catch and drive line-out.
The home side came out firing in the second half and a second try from Bern, plus a wonderfully worked try for their captain Amber Reed, deservedly put the Bears in front, and despite having opportunities in the final 10 minutes the Chiefs were simply unable to produce the goods to put them back in front.
The Exeter Chiefs were told to expect a hostile atmosphere in north Bristol and the home crowd certainly delivered in making Shaftesbury Park an intimidating place to visit.
Despite the partisan home crowd it was the Chiefs who started the stronger and some early concerted pressure looked like it was going to result in the first points of the afternoon, however some strong Bristol defence managed to keep the visitors at bay.
It was the home side who eventually opened the scoring, with Bristol full-back Ella Lovibond carving through the Chiefs defence, before producing an exceptional offload to Coles who cut inside the despairing cover defence to dot down for a five pointer.
If the Chiefs were rocked by conceding the early score they certainly didn’t show it as Abbie Fleming picked a beautiful line before offloading to Nancy McGillivray who found Robinson tracking on her inside - and the scrum-half made no mistake with the finish, scampering in under the posts unopposed.
The Chiefs didn’t take long to bag their second score of the afternoon, when following a strong carry from Silvia Turani, some slick hands put Zackary in space and the USA captain used her customary power to burst through the covering Bristol defender to dot down.
With the Chiefs now looking like they had found their rhythm, the hosts who themselves are chasing a play off spot, came roaring back into the game, and after a strong driving maul and some concerted pressure, England star Bern was able to burrow her way over for her first of the afternoon.
The Chiefs made sure they had the final say in the first half however, when after some more dominant possession in the Bristol 22, the Bears were penalised and Liv McGoverne’s kick gave Exeter a line-out five metres from the Bristol line. From the resulting line-out, the Chiefs were able to unleash their renowned driving maul which was as imperious as ever, storming over the line, with Allen coming up with the ball for the visitors.
HALF TIME: BRISTOL BEARS 12 EXETER CHIEFS 21
The Chiefs expected a reaction from their hosts at the start of the second half, and they certainly didn’t disappoint, with Bristol delivering a performance full of pace, power and intensity which Exeter were simply unable to live with.
The scrum became a real area of success for the home side, with the Bears front-row, which contained two of the Grand Slam winning Red Roses, causing enormous issues for the Chiefs. It was therefore no shock or surprise when the Bears scored the opening try of the second half, with Bern powering her way over for her second try of the afternoon, after what seemed like an eternity of time spent in the Exeter 22.
It wasn’t long before the Bears hit the lead, and what was ultimately the winning score was certainly the best of the afternoon. With the attack starting in the Bristol 22, and with some powerful carries from the likes of Bern, the Bears were able to spread the ball from left to right, which eventually resulted in Coles being put into space on the right wing, and then a nice one two between Coles and Reed resulted in the Bristol captain sprinting over, to send the home supporters into a state of ecstasy.
There was still time for Exeter to find a response, however with the Chiefs starting to set up camp in the Bristol 22, a combination of handling errors and strong Bristol defence meant the Chiefs were unable to find the go-ahead score, and it left the Chiefs with just one match point, and with the prospect of a home semi final in the play offs now firmly in the balance.
Bristol Bears: E Lovibond; A Coles (C Keight 71), P Murray, A Reed (capt), D Wills, E Snowshill, K Bevan (L Burgess 63); S Pam (G Pyrs 70), L Davies, S Bern; H Cunningham, D Burns; M Barwick, J Herring (E Mulhearn 56), C Molloy. Replacements (not used): J Sprague; L O’Donnell, B King, R Bonner.
Tries – Coles, Bern (2), Reed; Conversions – Bevan (2)
Exeter Chiefs: L Cramer; K Buchanan, K Zackary, N McGillivray (G Cantorna 60), E Sinclair (L Sheehan 76); L McGoverne, F Robinson; S Turani (A Middlebrooke 76), E Tuttosi (C Moloney 57), D Menin (L Hanlon 57); N Fryday (G Senft 57), P Leitch (capt); A Fleming, M Allen (E Jefferies 65), R Johnson. Replacement (not used): B Bradley
Tries – Robinson, Zackary, Allen; Conversions – McGoverne (3)
Referee: D Jones
Attendance: 1,114