Doidge delighted with win on the road

By Harry Scott-Munro
21/12/21

Exeter Chiefs Women’s back Merryn Doidge expressed that it was “good to get back to winning ways,” as her side put in a performance of real attacking prowess to beat DMP Durham Sharks 88-0 in Darlington.

The Chiefs put in a Christmas cracker of a performance that contained all the trimmings, with fourteen tries in all, including one from Doidge herself and a further score for Laura Sheehan after a scintillating break from Doidge to release the Irish wing.

“We have been working hard to develop our attack and trying to better a few bits. Today it was nice to put these to work and have some attacking platform to showcase that,” explained Doidge.

Speaking off her own involvement in her side’s try scoring exploits, Doidge was keen to stress the importance of the efforts of the collective squad in creating those opportunities.

“Everyone played a part in all of the play today,” she highlighted. “It’s good to get on the scoresheet and to assist Laura. From a 13 point of view, it was nice to be able to get the pass in for that one.”

Doidge has played across the backline for the Chiefs this season, starting on the wing and finishing at centre against the Sharks. Despite being more accustomed to the role of full-back, the Cornish-born back explained that her goal was to continue to develop her game and her understanding of each position on the field.

“It’s been a bit of a challenge to adjust to what each of the roles are, but I’ve been working on it and stepping up to the plate. Hopefully, I can keep getting up to speed and proving myself on the wing as well.”

Against the Sharks, both Megan Foster and Lizzie Hanlon make their Chiefs debuts, with Nichola Fryday and Eilidh Sinclair both making their first Allianz Premier 15s starts. Doidge was delighted to see all of her team-mates show what they can do in a Chiefs shirt.

There is a real togetherness within the Exeter shirt this season, with Doidge explaining how that team bond has played such an important role for the side.

“To win it today with three new caps on the pitch is fantastic. Hopefully, we can keep those winning ways going now. That’s why we’re performing at the moment and how we’ll move forward. It’s about bringing that cohesiveness all the way through. It’s great to get those new caps through and we’ll keep improving.”