Bath Rugby Women’s Sevens took part in their first ever tournament on the weekend and delivered a promising set of results.
As the first Women’s team to be formed at Bath Rugby, the Newbury Sevens tournament saw the squad meet some strong and well-established teams in Pool A, including Army Reds, Lionesses and Samurai RFC.
Bath took on a tough side in Army Reds in the opening round and took a lead into half-time with two tries from captain Thea Thompson. In the second half, they faced a re-energised Army outfit who quickly got a foothold in the game to secure a 31-12 win.
Up next for Bath were the Lionesses, where the team fought to victory and saw them secure their first win of the tournament scoring 17 points to the Lionesses’ 12. Welsh speedster Bethan Wakefield scored two tries with Megan Barwick adding a third.
In Round Three, the Blue, Black and White came up against a tough Samurai RFC side who showed their experience in the Sevens game. Wakefield was able to make a break to score her third try of the day but it proved a consolation in a 42-7 loss.
Bath were awarded a 21-0 walkover with an opponent failing to show and combined with their win over the Lionnesses, it advanced them into the Plate semi-finals against the Wooden Spoon Marauders. Maria Crowfoot’s side produced a spirited, five-star display with Barwick, Wakefield, Robyn Price and Thompson all crossing the whiteash in a well-deserved 31-15 victory.
Progressing to the final, Bath went head-to-head against a dominant and solid Savvy Panthers.. Despite the girls’ best efforts, the Panthers were too tough to breakdown and saw the final go the opposition’s way ending in 24-5.
For a team who were grouped together a month ago, Bath showed pride, passion and a lot of cohesion throughout the whole tournament. Women and Girls Rugby Development Lead, Crowfoot, was proud of their proud of their performance.
“Hopefully what comes through in our performance is a team that really enjoys their rugby,” she said.
“We’ve scored some really good tries and that’s what we want. We want every game to be as enjoyable as possible.
“When you think this team has been selected off the back of one, maybe two trials and only had a short period of training time, they’ve really gelled and stuck together.
“History has been made. To reach a Plate final is a great effort from a team who has only played together a handful of times. All of this will help us progress as we head to the South Island Sevens this weekend.
“This is just the start for this Bath Rugby team – watch this space!”