The Saints kicked off 2020 with a hard-fought win against a physical Supermarines side.

The Woollams outfit made the long journey up to Swindon looking to gain a win to put the pressure on at the top of the table, leading into the final few games of the season.

The game started with Supermarines controlling territory, building long periods of possession deep in the opposition half. The Saints defended with extreme physicality and the blue wall held strong for a massive 25 minutes before a breakaway try was scored by Caz Bolton after shipping the ball wide and exploiting the disorganised defence. Collie’s conversion was successful to take the visitors into the lead, 0-7.

The game continued in a similar fashion with the home side enjoying the majority of possession and using their powerful forwards to drive the ball down the pitch into Saints territory, but as it did before the first try, the away side’s defensive line couldn’t be breached. In a similar style to their first score, Saints’ second came off the back of strong defence forcing a loose kick. Their clinical, dynamic back division wasted no time in moving the ball the width of the pitch on a kick return to allow Beth Saunders to dive over in the corner, extending the lead to 0-12.

Soon thereafter, Supermarines rallied and established field position in the Saints 22, again using their powerful forwards to gain momentum, eventually leading to a try being scored just wide of the posts, bringing them back in the game, 7-12.

Saints looked to respond. After even more resolute defence, they turned the ball over in their own 5-meter line, Captain Mica Gooding galloped 40 metres to take the away side down the field. The ball was then moved wide once again, before Claire Mckenna raced down the touchline to score in the corner, taking the Saints to a 17-7 lead.

Late on, Supermaries kicked a penalty to secure a losing bonuses point. Meaning the visitors came away the winners, 17-10.

The Saints will take a lot of confidence from their fantastic defence, however, they will rue the lack of tries scored and eventually missing out on the try bonus point.

The Woollams women have a week off, before welcoming high flyers Thurrock to Woolams in a late-season showdown

Paul Adams,

Saints Manager