MATCH REPORT | Bristol Bears Women 17-31 Saracens Women (AC Final)
28/04/2024 17:54
Saracens Women secured the Allianz Cup title in pulsating fashion, as they overturned a halftime deficit to silence the crowd at Shaftesbury Park.
On a dry and blustery afternoon, it was Saracens who started the stronger with Amelia MacDougall controlling things from fly-half.
It was Saracens asking all the questions in attack in the early moments, with Isla Alejandro causing havoc on the wing, before the Bears roared into life as they went to the corner.
Sarries survived though, with Sonia Green producing a superb steal to allow her side to clear their lines.
It was cagey from both teams, as they looked to wear down the opposition defences, all whilst trying to keep their own attacks flowing.
Bryony Cleall had impressive afternoon with a series of barnstorming runs, whilst May Campbell produced several moments of magic with ball in hand, but Saracens still struggled to make any inroads in the Bristol 22.
Despite all of Saracens' dominance, it was the Bears who opened the scoring, with a looping pass finding its way to Deborah Wills, for the former Saracen to race away and notch the first try of the afternoon.
Saracens were continue to get good go forward from Campbell but Wills added a second shortly after the half hour mark to leave Saracens down on the scoreboard.
They needed a response and they found it from the restart, with Akina Gondwe securing a crucial turnover for her side, before Tori Sellors took the penalty quickly, injecting pace that the Bears couldn't cope with.
From there, Saracens went back to type, with Gondwe eventually crashing over to limit the deficit at the break.
Sarries needed to start fast in the second half and they did just that after another line break, with the ball being worked wide for Lotte Clapp to wrestle over out wide to level the tie.
Cleall was growing into the game now, carrying with intensity and purpose every time she touched the ball. Sarries were continuing to ask questions and they thought they'd hit the front shortly after, only to be held up over the line.
That third score soon came though, with Bryony Field crashing over off the back of the maul.
Saracens lost the ball forward from the restart though, gifting the Bears and opportunity to respond immediately.
They did just that, with Ella Lovibond running in out wide to level the match again.
It was ebbing and flowing heading into the last twenty minutes, with Bristol then losing the ball from the kick-off in a carbon copy of Saracens' error.
Alex Austerberry's side were determined to make the most of the opportunity, but they were again unlucky to not score, with Sharifa Kasolo losing control of the ball on the line, before being held up.
Eventually though, the pressure told, as Saracens' pack kept it tight again, building the phases before Cleall found a blade of white grass to dot the ball down and restore the lead.
MacDougall's superb conversion took her side clear by 7, but the Bears came back again, with Saracens' last-ditch defence and dominance at the lineout coming to the fore to hold Brisol out.
With time ticking away, Sarries worked their way back up the field, with Sarah McKenna picking a perfectly timed pass on her outside for Campbell to race through and dive over to secure the win.
Sarries still wanted another score and they nearly found it thanks to another brutal driving maul, but they were unable to capitalise in the end.
That didn't matter though, as by that point the game was won, with the referee's whistle sparking celebrations on the pitch and in the stands, as Saracens secured their 11th cup victory.
