Wasps Women 0 Chiefs Women 84
Wasps Women 0
Exeter Chiefs Women 84
James Fowler at Twyford Avenue
Ruthless Exeter Chiefs Women showed ‘no mercy’ to Allianz Premier 15s rivals, Wasps Women, as they recorded another maximum haul from their latest away-day trip to London.
Susie Appleby’s side ruled supreme, handing out their own portrayal of capital punishment, scoring 14 tries in total at Twyford Avenue.
Ten of those scores came in a dominant second half showing which the hosts were simply unable to live with.
Emily Tuttosi opened the scoring in the 11th minute from a powerful close-range, catch-and-drive line-out, before Liv McGoverne, playing at inside centre for the first time this season, showed her class with two quickfire tries. Red Roses star Claudia MacDonald, who was up against her old club, darted over just before half time, after the Chiefs maul was unusually held up just short.
With the bonus point secured by half time, the shackles could well and truly be let off the Chiefs attack in the second half, where the tiring Wasps defence simply had no answer to the pace, power and precision shown by the Devonians.
There were second half tries for Rachel Johnson, Flo Robinson, Laura Sheehan, Edel McMahon, Hope Rogers, as well as a brace for Scottish international winger Eilidh Sinclair and a hat-trick for the mightily impressive American captain Kate Zackary, who yet again showed her incredible versatility switching between the back-row and centre.
The Chiefs entered this encounter against a winless Wasps knowing that anything but a large bonus point victory would be seen as a disappointing return from their trip to the nation’s capital. It was, however, the Londoners who started the brighter with some strong ball carrying causing the Chiefs some early problems.
In order to gain some control, the Chiefs resorted to their powerful tried and tested driving maul, with Canadian international Tuttosi controlling the ball perfectly at the back to dive over for Exeter’s opener.
McGoverne made sure the momentum was well and truly continued when, after the driving maul was checked just short of the line, she picked a beautiful angle before powering over the covering Wasps defenders to dot down. The Kiwi back repeated this feat just a couple of minutes late as this time she used her dazzling footwork rather than power to go over the whitewash almost unopposed.
Then, on the stroke of half time, the Chiefs wrapped up the bonus point when MacDonald, starting at scrum-half for the first time, darted off the back of yet another strong driving maul to touch down in the left-hand corner.
HALF TIME: WASPS WOMEN 0 EXETER CHIEFS WOMEN 24
Wasps had certainly defied their lowly league position to make life difficult for the Chiefs during the first half, with their tenacity making it very challenging for the visitors to gain any sort of fluency in attack.
The second half was to be a different story however, with the Chiefs fully showing their attacking prowess.
Johnson, who was the player of the match from last weekend’s victory over Bristol Bears, opened the scoring in the second half when she barged her way over following a strong driving maul and powerful carry from Italian international Silvia Turani.
Sinclair was to be the next person on the scoresheet, as she bagged a brace in quick succession, with some slick hands setting her free on the left for her first score, before she was able to show off her power for her second, as she shrugged off the attention of two Wasps defenders to go over the line.
By now the floodgates had well and truly be opened and there was to be no let up for the home side. Zackary claimed the first of her three in the 65th minute when she threw a sublime dummy before racing through under the posts, and then shortly afterwards replacement Robinson spotted a gap on the short side to canter in unopposed.
Sheehan, making a rare start for the Chiefs, showed her capability, as the Irish international stepped inside a couple of Wasps defenders, before powering her way over on the left hand side.
Then, it was to be another Irish international who crossed next, as McMahon – another up against her former club – showed her pace down the right-hand side to sprint clear of the now clearly tiring Wasps defenders.
The final stages was all about the Americans, as first Zackary sprinted clear from 50 metres out, in what was a spectacular solo effort, before claiming her hat-trick just a couple of minutes later, as Rogers burst through the middle before perfectly timing her pass to the supporting Zackary who raced clear for her third.
The final try of the afternoon came yet again from a close range effort from Rogers, who has made scoring from less than a metre out a real speciality this season. The try was however set up from a blistering run from Jodie Ounsley, who stepped inside brilliantly on the halfway line, before racing clear, only to be hauled down just a meter from the Wasps line. Rogers, though, was on hand to finish off, which topped off yet another enormous bonus point victory for the Chiefs, their eighth in a row.
Wasps: L Musgrove (H Friend 68); J-J Linkins (S Flowers 58), T Vaughan-Fowler, H Edwards, M Lewis; E Lennon, T Braunerova (P Roberts 40); L Clark (capt, H Ironton 53), C Blanco, A Stock (H Ellender 33), S Pinnock, G Wood; E Tuck, S Mead, F Cooper.
Yellow Card: H Ellender
Chiefs: L Cramer (M Doidge 58); J Ounsley, N McGillivray (G Senft 15), L McGoverne, E Sinclair (L Sheehan 51); R Wilkins, C MacDonald (F Robinson 58); S Turani (H Rogers 58) E Tuttosi (C Nielson 51), C Jacoby (D Menin 58); N Fryday (M Leonard 48), P Leitch (capt); R Johnson, E McMahon K Zackary.
Tries – Tuttosi, McGoverne (2), MacDonald, Johnson, Sinclair (2), Robinson, Sheehan, Zackary (3), McMahon, Rogers; Conversions – Cramer (4), McGoverne (3)
Referee: J Cook