Richmond put up a strong effort against visiting fourth-place Saracens.
After a storming start that saw Richmond camped on the Sarries line, a try from Ro Burnfield as a result of an excellent driving maul put Richmond on the board 17 minutes in. However, Sarries struck back six minutes later with a try from Captain Sonia Green and a conversion from fly-half Zoe Harrison.
Saracens added to their scoreline in the 27th minute, after a slick move from a stolen line-out saw returning international Claire Allan go over in the corner.
Just after the half hour mark, there was a lengthy delay as Richmond flanker Sam McCarthy was stretchered off with a serious ankle injury – best wishes for a speedy recovery to Sam.
The home side continued to fight hard and in the minute before halftime, Richmond powered over the line after a great break from England back row Alex Matthews to cut the deficit to just two points. After a strong first half from both sides, the score was 12-10 to Sarries.
In the second half, Saracens took hold of the game and they capitalised on a Richmond penalty after just two minutes as Bryony Cleall added five points to the scoreline and Harrison converted.
Three minutes later, Allan made a massive break to assist Nina Vistisen on her first try. Harrison again made the conversion to put the Sarries ahead 26-10.
Both sides battled fiercely for possession as penalties added up with some brilliant defence from both sides restricting the space available.
After a break from Vistisen resulting in a knock on, Saracens turned possession back over and Harrison spotted a gap in the Richmond defence to score her first try of the match with a classy finish to put Saracens firmly in control.
Solid defence from Richmond at their try line kept Sarries working hard, but another try from Cleall and two more points from the accurate Harrison put the visiting side up 28 points, with the game starting to get away from the home team.
A rolling maul gave Matthews the opportunity to make a massive break and gain ground for Richmond as they showed great spirit to come at Saracens time and time again, but Harrison and Vistisen added scores to put a further sheen on the scoreboard.
A last-minute break from Laura Kapo saw the powerful prop go storming through to give Richmond some much needed go-forward but Saracens turned over the ruck and kicked it out to complete a strong victory that sees them up to fourth in the table.
Final Score Richmond 10 – Saracens 52
Richmond Team:
- Emily Scott 2. Emma Croker 3. Laura Kapo 4. Claire Phelps 5. Ro Burnfield 6. Sam McCarthy 7. Fran Hall 8. Alex Matthews 9. Steffi Clarke 10. Abi Chamberlain 11. Kiri Lose 12. Rebecca Ball 13. Jade Wong 14. Kay Wilson 15. Oli Davies 16. Chevvy Horner 17. Sian Hobday 18. Charlotte William
Subs – Williams on for Wilson (injury), Hobday on for McCarthy (injury), Horner on for Hall (60mins)
Richmond take on Wasps away in Acton on 10 December.
Richmond 2s also played Saracens 2s and came away with their second win of the season, beating the visitors 36-15.
A powerful performance from the pack gave clean ball for the backs to work with. Centre Kirsty Lee-Griffiths made the most of it, scoring a hat trick of tries on her birthday.
Report courtesy of Richmond Ladies
