Ladies take on top of the table Eccles

The ladies took on league leaders Eccles in a clash of the titans at Sutherland Park, which despite all the rugby the pitches looked fantastic.

Novos had some new faces in the squad this week and despite missing several key players they were looking to get back to winning ways. Eccles applied pressure from the off and a knock on from the kick off gave them a foot hold in our half. Good ball retention combined with a strong offloading game caused Novos problems and poor tackling gifted Eccles the first try of the game within the first 5 minutes. Some stern words were had in the huddle and Novos decided they were going to start playing. Some hard running back rowers Fran Mockford and Amelia Neagle gave Novos go forward ball. Jess Richards and Hannah Pollard were everywhere hitting anything in sight. The first scrum of the match set the tone as Novos had Eccles marching back at a rate of knots. This gave our notoriously dangerous back line some excellent ball to attack with. With Caitlin Sedgeworth and Ruth Scott pulling the strings Novos looked ever threatening with power runs from Emma Nichol and Capucine ‘KP’ Auger. Despite a mountain a pressure Novos were their own worst enemies and whenever they threatened the line, a bad pass or a knock on cost us several try scoring opportunities. However, the team was patient and eventually debutant Capucine ‘KP’ Auger danced her way over the line after 25 minutes for Novos first score of the game.

This sparked Novos into life. The kick off was well taken by Amelia Neagle who, supported by her forward pack, carried Novos up to the half way line. This created the perfect opportunity and a great line from Emma Nichol broke through the Eccles defensive line, an even better offload released Capucine ‘KP’ Auger with 40 meters of fresh air to the line. Capucine ‘KP’ Auger showed good pace to run in for her second try of the day. Emma Nichol’s radar was on the money as she made it 2 from 2 for a 14-7 with 30 minutes on the clock. The Novos scrum continued to dominate, after last week’s match the ladies had worked hard on scrummaging during the week and it was great to see that hard work paying off on the pitch. This powerful scrum lead by front row Cat Ingoe, Rachel Hayes and Sal Fitzpatrick put Novos in complete control. Despite a series of handling errors Novos were able to put some phases together and the pressure led to a third try from Fran Mockford, Nichol kept up her great work with the boot to give Novos a 21-7 half time lead.

A calm and composed Novos started the second half and despite a series of good attacking play from Eccles the red wall stood strong. Once again Novos went to the scrum to put them into the game, a controversial quick tap penalty worked an overlap for Novos and despite clinical hands Rachel Cooper was denied in the corner. Eccles were able to clear their lines but the pressure kept coming from Novos and a dominant performance from forward of the match Jess Richard gave Novos another opportunity. Not to miss out again a trade mark show and go from fly half Ruth Scott earned Novos their 4th try of the match at 50 minutes. Nichol was unable to convert from wide out. The game tightened up for the next 10 minutes as Eccles dominated possession but a strong Novos defence lead by substitute Steph Claxton gave Eccles nothing. Some great support play from Jen Meaghs put Novos in a strong position. It was another out of the blue run from flanker Janey Eccles who danced her way past 4 defenders to score Novos 5th try and secure the try bonus point. Nichol made it 4/5 with another excellent conversion. It was at this point that Amelia ‘Magic’ Magistrali made her game changing 90 second impact before coming off with a swollen eye. We hope you have a speedy recovery.

It wouldn’t be a Novos ladies game unless they were to have a horrible 10 minutes. Some poor decision making and some even worse tackling gave Eccles a score under the posts to make it 33-12. Eccles now with their tales up came straight back at Novos and a 60 meter break put them right back in the game with a converted score to make it 33-19. It was squeaky bum time on the side line as it looked like a Novos collapse was on the cards. But as they did last week the girls showed their character and fort back into the game. With the 10 minutes out of their system they regained a grip on the game with total control in the last 10 minutes. Novos earnt a penalty just outside the Eccles 22 which Emma Nichol had to tackle captain Amelia Neagle to prevent her taking it quickly. With her kicking confidence high Nichol opted for the shot at goal. This was aimed perfectly at the post which left Eccles in disarray and lead to a Novos turn over. A series of forward phases were finished with a try for Steph Claxton. Emma Nichol finished another fine performance with her best kick of the day making the final score 40-19, a well-deserved win for Novos. Still undefeated at home, Novos are on the road next week to Loughborough as they look to continue the progress they have made this season.

Thanks for all your continued support this season!