Desire drives team to the top
After the victory last weekend against table toppers Thurrock, second-place Bath Ladies made the trip along the M4 to face fourthplace Henley Hawks.
Earlier in the season at Lambridge, Bath came away with a convincing 32-14 victory, but with the weather and pitch conditions possibly acting as a leveller Bath had prepared for a tough game.
Right from the first whistle, Henley were pinned back into their own 22 and, with the wind against them, were really struggling to exit. Solid defence from Bath forced the opposition into mistakes or rushed kicks, but then Henley’s defence was solid and kept Bath out for the first quarter.
However, a penalty kicked towards the corner led to a Bath catch-and-drive from the lineout with hooker Jess Sprague in charge of the ball as it was grounded underneath a host of bodies. Moments later, some dogged defence in the Henley 22 forced the home side to spill the ball and Bath flanker Ellen Witt scooped up and hurtled down the touchline to dot down for Bath’s second try. Fly-half Sarah Holloway expertly converted for 12-0 at the half-time break.
Bath made a couple of changes with hooker Hannah Stephens joining the front row, and young outside-back Leah Mcgoldrick - a recent addition to the squad from Ulster - in onto the wing for her debut. The second half started in similar fashion with Henley struggling to go forward with the ball and were being forced into errors or having to kick back to the opposition.
The visitors managed the game exceptionally well, with centres Sam Macdonald and Rebecca Wye carrying well and creating quick ball for fly-half Holloway to pin Henley back easily. Bath’s third try came from some excellent interand play in midfield where prop Trish Brown fed her partner in crime who galloped through to cross the line from 20 metres.
Bath started to empty the bench to bring on some freshness as they hunted for the all-important fourth try. Second row Emma Quarterman and flanker Hannah Smith came on and got straight into action with some big carries and solid defence, whilst winger Nia Grundy looked solid on her return to first team action.
After a Henley knock on near their own line, the Bath pack sensed that this was their moment, as an all-eight shove resulted in the scrum being marched backwards leaving number eight Robyn Price with the job of touching down for her first try in the Blue, Black and White.
With the job done, Bath welcomed prop Cat Ireland on for her first team debut, as well as a few other positional changes as the coaches looked to see different combinations as they enter an exciting time for the team. The final score was 22-0, and Bath returned home with five league points to sit the top of the league with four games left to play.
Head coach John Gould said: “In conditions like this it comes down to game management and desire, and we were brilliant at both today.
“The players are working so hard at the moment to develop areas of our game which we know we will need in some of the big games that we’ve got coming up. It’s certainly turning into an exciting league run in which we’re all enjoying being part of.”
This Sunday the ladies host eighth-place Hove, kick off at 2.30pm, whilst the third team head to Thornbury RFC for a league fixture, again 2.30pm. All support and cheering from the side-lines would be welcomed.