Gloucester-hartpury claim narrow victory thanks to Jones’ try

GLOUCESTER-HARTPURY edged out Sale Sharks 17-14 in the Allianz Premier 15s.

Sean Lynn’s side started strongly with Bethan Lewis opening the game with an interception try under the posts.

However, after scrum half Bianca Blackburn was sent to the bin, Sharks capitalised on having an extra player with Hannah Field going over and levelling, shortly followed by Laura Perrin putting them ahead at the break.

A penalty by Daisy Fahey helped close the gap to 14-10.

The winning score came from Hannah Jones, followed by a conversion by Daisy Fahey that settled the victory.

Neither side could add to the score with frustration growing and penalty count mounting up and in the final minutes Kelly Smith was sent to the bin but Gloucester-hartpury held out.

Meanwhile, Ellena Perry and Natasha Hunt came off the bench as Emily Scarratt landed a penalty in overtime to secure a 25-23 win for England over France Women at Twickenham.

Simon Middleton’s side scored 15 points in the final 10 minutes to steal victory from Les Bleues, ending their 2020 unbeaten, and cementing their position as the number one team in the world.

The Red Roses are now on a sevenmatch winning streak against France and have won 11 of the last 12 meetings.

“The team found a way to win. The game was nowhere near where we’d have liked it to have been in terms of how we wanted it to pan out. That’s international rugby. It’s not always how you want it to be,” said head coach Simon Middleton.

Meanwhile, England Women will be in Pool C for the 2021 Rugby World Cup after the draw was made in host country New Zealand.

The Red Roses have been drawn in a pool with France, South Africa and Fiji in what is the first women’s World Cup to be held in the southern hemisphere.