Allianz Premier 15s – Round Three
Gloucester-Hartpury moved clear at the top of the table with a one-sided victory over toiling Wasps.
The irrepressible Ellie Rugman got them off the mark inside five minutes, and from there it was a procession towards the Wasps’ line, broken only by stubborn defence from the hosts.
Though Glos-Pury had a full hand of Welsh and Irish players available – Sam Monaghan honoured with the captaincy in Mo Hunt’s absence – they still have practitioners like Alex Matthews, Maud Muir and Siwan Lillicrap to accommodate in the side. They will provide a real challenge for the other clubs hoping for a last-four place.
What an irony that three of their starters wore Wasps colours across the last three seasons.
Quins’ hard-earned 19-10 win over great rivals Saracens leaves the multiple champions gasping for breath in fifth position. So much for my pre-season predictions.
If we say the ten clubs are still not at full strength, it really means the Red Roses remain largely absent.
Only Morwenna Talling, Detysha Harper (bench) and Rosie Galligan (bench) donned their boots, though Galligan was sent into action long before the usual swop-over time of 60 minutes.
If Quins’ win can’t really be termed an upset, Sale’s one-point win over Loughborough certainly can. It only goes to show how much Lightning need their Red Rose roster back in action. It raises Sharks to the heady heights of second place in the league (see table below).
The only bad news for them is that current positions depend so much on who has played whom. Much will change over the coming 15 rounds.
DMP deserve congratulations on scoring a dozen points for the second time.
Results
Bristol Bears 84 DMP Sharks 12
Exeter Chiefs 62 UWWarriors 18
*Harlequins 19 Saracens 10
*Sale Sharks 15 Loughborough Lightning 14
Wasps 3 Gloucester-Hartpury 67
*Livestreamed games
Table P W L Pts
Gloucester-H 3 3 0 15
Sale 3 2 0 14
Exeter 3 2 1 10
Bristol 3 2 1 10
Saracens 3 2 1 10
Harlequins 3 2 1 9
UWW 3 2 1 6
Lightning 3 0 3 0
Wasps 3 0 3 0
DMPS 3 0 3 0
Afterthought
Here’s an interesting XV. How was it put togther?
15 Ellie Kildunne 14 Abby Dow 13 Amy Wilson Hardy 12 Kate Alder (captain) 11 Ellie Boatman/ Celia Quansah 10 Meg Jones 9 Claudia Macdonald 1 Rochelle Clark 2 Amy Cokayne/Cliodhna Moloney/Heather Kerr 3 Maud Muir/Bryony Cleall 4 Sam Monaghan/Lénaïg Corson 5 Ciara Cooney 6 Sadia Kabeya/Edel McMahon/Abi Burton 7 Claire Molloy 8 Harriet Millar-Mills
That’s right, they all play(ed) for Wasps. All are/were internationals, bar the indispensable Kate Alder as captain. Some team! At least 14 of them have sought pastures new. After three matches the once mighty Wasps have mustered 13 points.
