Warriors Women had ten players on international duty over the weekend, with eight involved in the opening round of the TikTok Six Nations and two representing England U20s against France in Normandy.
Enjoy! 🤪🐉🔥
Our four Warriors doing us proud today 👏 pic.twitter.com/SCKIWfagFR
— Worcester Warriors Women (@WorcsWarriorsW) March 26, 2022
Arguably the story of the weekend was in Dublin as Warriors quartet Carys Phillips, Alex Callender, Ffion Lewis and Sioned Harries helped Wales to a 27-19 bonus-point victory over Ireland.
Phillips powered over from the back of a driving lineout in the first half, picking up from where she left off during the autumn internationals last year. Her try cut the gap to 7-5, with Ireland hitting back ten minutes before the break to set up a thrilling second period, which saw Phillips and her club teammates rise to the occasion.
Wales were the first to strike in the second half through the electric Jasmine Joyce, who sprinted in at the corner to bring the visitors to within four points of Ireland.
Harries came off the bench on 52 minutes, her first appearance in a Wales shirt for over two years, and what an introduction she was as the back-row became the catalyst for a stunning comeback.
Undeterred by Stacey Flood’s try for Ireland, which extended the hosts’ lead, Harries used her strength to force Donna Rose over for the first of her two tries. With time running out, Wales kept their nerve and Rose doubled her tally two minutes from time – former Warrior Robyn Wilkins slotting home the conversion to give them the lead for the first time in the contest.
Hannah Jones put the game to bed in the last minute as Ireland pushed forward in numbers to seal a memorable victory for the women in red.
Replacements from the #RedRoses 🔄 pic.twitter.com/i2g9dWfvHm
— England Rugby (@EnglandRugby) March 26, 2022
Alex Matthews was a second half replacement for the Red Roses as they recorded a resounding 57-5 triumph over Scotland in Edinburgh. Warriors hooker Lana Skeldon started for Scotland, while club captain Lyndsay O’Donnell and Lisa Cockburn were among the replacements.
Meanwhile, Centre of Excellence graduates Abi Kershaw and Jemima Moss featured for England U20s in France as they were beaten 35-14 by Les Bleues. The duo’s development at Sixways has been boosted by game time for Jo Yapp’s side and they have a bright future ahead of them.