“To win the match from that position is a great testament to the character of this group”
Alex Austerberry
Saracens Women pulled off another last-minute win as they beat Loughborough Lightning 31 – 28 at Loughborough University on Saturday 23 March.
In doing so, Saracens secured top spot in the Tyrrells Premier 15s and booked a home semi-final for the play-offs next month.
This was the first match in the TP15s for both teams since before the Women’s Six Nations and they both welcomed back a number of England’s Grand Slam winners.
It was the away team that got off to the better start as the power of the Saracens pack saw Bryony Cleall driven over from a maul inside the Loughborough 22.
A second try followed less than ten minutes later as the Saracens’ defence drove the home team back before captain Lotte Clapp intercepted and ran in under the posts.
That put Saracens 12 – 0 up inside the opening quarter with Zoe Harrison converting Clapp’s try.
A third try came just after 30 minutes and it was Clapp once again as she went over following a nice interchange with Harrison.
The Saracens 10 converted again and the away team were 19 – 0 going into half-time. However, discipline had been an issue for the away team and Bryony Cleall was sent to the sin bin after repeated infringements.
Loughborough took their chance as they kicked to the corner and went over from the resulting lineout thanks to Sarah Hunter.
Half-time score: 19 – 7 in Saracens’ favour
Despite being a player down it was Saracens who took control early in the second half and this time it was Poppy Cleall who went over after a powerful driving maul.
Saracens were now 24 – 7 up but it was Loughborough that dominated the rest of the half as they gained a monopoly on territory and started to punish mistakes by the away team.
Two tries in eight minutes to Olivia Jones and Dalaeka Melin took the score to 24 – 21 with 15 minutes left.
Loughborough continued to apply pressure and after four minutes inside the Saracens 22 as Sarah Bonar crashed over for a fourth try and took the lead with just three minutes left in the match.
A smart kick-off from Saracens forced Loughborough into conceding a penalty and gave the away team one final chance to win the game.
From the lineout the forward pack picked and went and eventually it was Hannah Botterman who applied the finishing touches to the delight of the away fans, team and staff.
Harrison put the final flourish on the win with her third conversion of the night and means Saracens keep up the seven point lead at the top of the table ahead of their home match against Firwood Waterloo Ladies next week at Allianz Park.
There was also a vital win for the Development Team against Loughborough Lightning earlier that day. Saracens needed a bonus point win to maintain a one point lead at the top of the Development League.
First half tries by Rowan White and Georgie Lingham, both converted by White, gave them a 14 – 0 lead. The second half was a tense encounter but two tries in the final five minutes including a final individual effort from Izzy Carroll gave Saracens a 26 – 0 win.