England 47
USA 26
Emma Duffy reports from Billings Park, UCD
DEFENDING CHAMPIONS ENGLAND had enough done to march into the Women’s Rugby World Cup semi-final stages, but a late onslaught and bonus point try for USA means that they’re in pole position for the best runners-up slot.
Kris Thomas’ late try could be crucial in deciding the best second place-finisher to qualify, with all eyes on the Pool C decider this evening. Only an Ireland win can oust the Eagles from their position as fourth seed, a losing bonus point would make Les Bleus the best runners-up even if they fall to the hosts.
Going into the all-important Pool B decider, both England and USA were two from two, each having comfortably dispatched Spain and Italy. It was hard to look past the Red Roses though, the defending champions and the only full-time outfit in the tournament.
After a shaky opening few minutes from both sides, the reigning champions started to mould more and more into the game, mustering up some promising attacking play.
Five minutes in though, vice-captain Emily Scarratt blasted a penalty from right under the posts wide, and it looked like this mightn’t be as straight-forward as Simon Middleton’s side had thought.
Scarratt soon redeemed her nervy start however, as she raced onto the end of a great kick from Katy Mclean through the gap and into the area. She outpaced Cheta Emba, doing just enough to clinch her side’s first try and made no mistake from the tee on second asking.
England settled into the game more and more as the minutes passed, playing some beautiful and relaxed rugby. Their next points on the board came courtesy of a textbook driving maul — USA prop Katy Augustyn was the player to pull it down, referee Joy Neville subsequently dishing out a yellow card and awarding a penalty try.
Marlie Packer then expertly landed two tries in six minutes as the number one ranked side in the world really started to enjoy the pool decider. On both occasions, England’s powerful pack pulled off impressive driving mauls and Packer had the final say, with Scarratt glossing over the extras.
With rings of ‘USA, USA’ around the grounds, the Eagles started to grow in confidence and soon found a way to cancel out some of the unanswered 28 points. Off the back of a five-metre scrum, Kate Zackary charged over the line for their opening try, while Alev Ketler made it seven with the subsequent kick.
The USA momentum was soon nipped at the bud however, as Katy Mclean continued her outstanding form, blazing through to land her first of the day as the clock ran down to the interval.
On the restart, it was as you were.
England continued to flex their considerable muscle from the word go, Amy Wilson Hardy the next to ground a try as Scarratt cancelled out her preceding missed conversion with a successful one.
It looked like this was just going to turn into a numbers game as the Red Roses’ driving maul prospered again, Amy Cokayne recording her side’s seventh.
But USA’s never-say-die attitude shone through, as the crowd got behind them. Starved of possession for much of the game, they took full advantage of a promising attack led by Naya Tapper and Cheta Emba, Emba crossing to finish.
A moment of individual brilliance then saw Naya Elena Tapper claw another back for her side, weaving her way towards the whitewash to the delight of the fans. “We want another one, just like the other one,” they roared, as Kelter nailed the conversiom.
Pete Steinberg’s side continued to show glimmers of brilliance throughout the remainder of the second half, as they pushed hard for the bonus point try.
It came just as the clock struck eighty, Kris Thomas using her speed to burn to cross, and Kimber Rozier adding the conversion.
England had their job done by that stage though, finishing top of the pool and marching on to the semi-final stages.
In today’s second Pool B clash, Spain beat Italy 22-8. There was nothing to separate the sides at the break but three tries from a Patricia Gracia-inspired Spain were the difference. Sara Barattin was the sole Azzurri try-scorer.
England scorers:
Tries: Emily Scarratt, Penalty try, Marlie Packer [x2], Katy Mclean, Amy Wilson-Hardy, Amy Cokayne
Conversions: Emily Scarratt [5/6]
USA scorers:
Tries: Kate Zackary, Cheta Emba, Naya Elena Tapper, Kris Thomas
Conversions: Alev Kelter [2/3], Kimber Rozier [1/1]
ENGLAND: 15, Danielle Waterman, 14. Amy Wilson-Hardy, 13. Emily Scarratt, 12. Amber Reed, 11. Kay Wilson, 10. Katy Mclean, 9. Natasha Hunt; 1. Vickii Cornborough, 2. Amy Cokayne, 3. Sarah Bern, 4. Abbie Scott, 5. Tamara Taylor, 6. Alex Matthews, 7. Marlie Packer, 8. Sarah Hunter (captain).
Replacements: 16. Vicki Fleetwood, 17. Rochelle Clark, 18. Justine Lucas, 19. Poppy Cleall, 20. Harriet Millar-Mills, 21. Leanne Riley, 22. Rachael Burford, 23. Megan Jones.
USA: 15, Cheta Emba, 14. Naya Elena Tapper, 13. Nicole Heavirland, 12. Alex Kelter, 11. Kris Thomas, 10. Kimber Rozier, 9. Deven Owsiany ; 1. Catherine Benson, 2. Kathryn Augustyn, 3. Tiffany Faaee (captain), 4. Stacey Bridges, 5. Alycia Washington, 6. Sara Parsons, 7. Kate Zackary, 8. Jordan Gray.
Replacements: 16. Sam Pankey, 17. Hope Rogers, 18. Nicole James, 19. Abby Gustaitis, 20. Kristine Sommer, 21. Kayla Cannett, 22. Sylvia Braaten, 23. Jess Wooden.
Referee: Joy Neville (Ireland).
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Very sad. Could be pushing 100 caps at 28 had it not been for some awful injuries. Few players will ever make the same impact straight out of school. Best of luck!
Best of luck in the future Luke. no one can ever say you ever gave up. Such a pity and what a waste.
It is easy to forget, after all of the injuries, aborted comebacks and finally early retirement, just quite how good Fitzgerald was when he burst onto the scene.
He went straight from school into the Leinster team – the last player to do that, I think. He was only 19 when he made his Leinster debut, and was playing for Ireland within two months – the youngest player to be capped in 29 years. By 22 he was a Lions starter. In retrospect, that may have been the peak of his career.
The footwork, the change of direction, the quick hands, the strong defence, the acceleration, the instincts – in the early days at least, it was all more than a little reminiscent of another Blackrock College back. I always felt that Fitzgerald’s best position would have been 13, but he really didn’t get to play there that often (mostly because of O’Driscoll). Nonetheless, wing, centre, full back – he so often excelled where ever he played. It is hard to escape the feeling that we never really saw Fitzgerald fulfil his potential – he had the talent and physical attributes to have been a great. Sadly, injuries prevented that.
Whilst it seems of late that Luke has been constantly injured it is pretty remarkable that, despite retiring at 29, he has played for Leinster for 10 seasons.
154 Leinster caps, 34 for Ireland, 1 for the Lions. 3 H Cups, 1 Euro Challenge Cup, 3 Pro 12s ,1 Grand Slam, 1 6N, 1 Lions tour. Not a bad career at all. Good luck Luke, and thanks for some great days.
(* he has also played for Ireland for 10 seasons)
He still made Ma Nonu look average last December at 13 , huge loss
Agreed, Martin. It’s a blow for Ireland, and a major problem for Leinster. Shame for the lad, of course.
Absolutely world class player that got the short straw in the injury department. I wish him well in retirement.
Never got a break from injury , joins a list of retiring players that just seems to get longer
Best of luck to him whatever he does
Well its not going to get shorter is it?
Pmsl
Well done Luke on an amazing career and an amount of resolve most of us wouldn’t have put up with. Best of luck for the future.
That’s absolutely heart breaking.
He was a class act but the last few years must have been tough, good luck to him.
He’s a top notch player that’s bloody unlucky when it comes to injury. It’s the correct decision for his own health.
When he was fit, he was dynamic…always looked dangerous looking to bust thru defences..sorry to hear the news…great player..
The lad had been putting in extra hours of pre-warm up and cool down just to be in an position to train at the same level of others. That’s a level of dedication most of us will never know in our careers. Such a pity we never got a sustained period of uninterrupted brilliance out of him. Wish him well in his future career.
Was absolutely brilliant in 2009 when he was a key member of the successful Leinster and Ireland teams and started for the Lions. Never got a break with injuries and bad luck.
A fit luke was a top class player…massive loss…
Genuinely sad to hear this, even if it was on the cards. A prodigious talent never fully realised due to awful luck. If the guy puts as much effort into his post rugby life as he did to this point I have no doubt he’ll be successful. Thanks for all your efforts in green and blue Luke.
Best wishes Luke
His dad was my childhood hero, and I had hoped Luke would be up there with the all time greats, and surpass his dad’s cap tally. They’ve both achieved 34 in the end. Sad day. Best of luck with your future Luke
It’s bizarre how some lads like Luke get injury after injury after injury yet others like Jamie have never been injured – is it technique ? Is it physiological make-up? Is it just bad luck ? ….. Hopefully someone somewhere is doing some research on it
I read somewhere that Heaslip has been studied. One outcome was that he has a high natural level of testosterone. Its interesting how small differences in DNA makeup can lead to major advantages in sport.
Heaslip is a bit of a freak of nature, but he is also exceptionally dedicated to keeping himself fit, and also supple. There was a great interview with him on here two years ago: http://www.the42.ie/jamie-heaslip-injury-prevention-1335756-Mar2014/
So, while Cian Healy and Stephen Ferris competed to see who could lift more, Heaslip was quietly doing his stretches for a couple of hours per day. Might be a lesson in that for Healy, in particular, who looks so muscular that he can hardly run.
I think its a combination of many factors, and a massive dose of bad luck.
Personally I have found that one injury tends to breed more injuries, as imbalances are created and compensation issues occur throughout the body.
Other factors include genetics, however those with sub-optimal genetics or any kind of compromised physical makeup will be weeded out through the rugby system, and will never make it near international level.
Theres also playing style, Lukes running style is very aggressive with hard changes in direction I’m sure that would place massive forces on knee hip etc.
On the testosterone comment you’d be hard pressed to find any player in the squad without a naturally higher level, at elite pro level if you have anything less it will show up pretty quick in your rate of recovery.
I assume he was being compared to other Leinster and Irish players not us mere average types.
Fantastic player. Sad to see him go. Thanks Lukey!
Wow. Hard to believe this. Probably one of the most gifted players to ever pull on a green jersey. However we will never realise just how good he could have been as injury took him down every time he started showing his potential. Devastated for him but he does need to think of number 1 and look after his body from here on. Best of luck in the future Luke.
F*ck.
A top player will always be missed. I hope whatever the medical reason for retirement does not effect his life off the field or has any long term ills.
Best of luck hope you will enjoy live, Munster man will miss you on and off the field Luke even
A shame but understandable with all his injuries. An incredibly gifted young player when he broke on the scene in 2009 and his part in the grand slam will never be forgotten.
Wow – even Rochelle has nice things to say about Luke. Speaks volumes, that.
Terrible news. Be it for the long list of injuries Luke has had, he would have been one of Ireland’s most capped players. It’s a harsh reminder of the nature of this sport when two young lads like Fitzgerald and Felix Jones have to retire before the age of 30.
Gutted for him. A brilliant player who achieved so much at the start of his career with Leinster, Ireland and the Lions. Such a pity he was cut down in his prime and we’ll never know what could have been. Admire him greatly for his dedication in coming back from a litany of injuries. Best of luck to him in the future.
Go well Lukey. Dazzling player always, happy to see you retire before a serious one. It’s only sport. I can’t wait to see what you do next!!
Thanks for the service Luke, exceptional talent cruelly robbed by the rigours of the game.
On a par with Messi retiring from international football
Ya, because Messi is what, the 128th best player in the world?
Lads. Please, time and a place. Have some respect.
Piotrek Troll you are a total knob#
Ireland were noticeably better when he came on against Argentina. A great player and a huge loss to Leinster and Ireland.
A legend on and off the pitch!
World class player never got a break from injury he was brilliant against Argentina in his last match for Ireland
Sad news. Fitzgerald was capable of really stepping up on the big occasions. Along with David Wallace, he was a level above every other Irish player at home to NZ in 2008, and turned in a world class performance against Argentina last year. Big loss for Leinster
Never reached his potential, if he looked after himself better he could have been top drawer
He looked after himself more than most. He showed a level of dedication and discipline that most others would never need to.
Don’t think there are many workout programs that prevent knee ligament damage or neck injuries. Getting 34 caps for your country on top of playing for your province and the lions is a hell of a lot more than I’ll ever do, never mind before I get to 29.
I’m sure you are at the top of your game Pete in whatever mid level job you are in, if any…
Well you’re definitely a Chief Plonker there Oisin
Terrible news but as the injuries piled up it was probably inevitable this wud happen..great career,even though it was short..will go down as one of leinster and Ireland’s great wingers..always gave 100%..best of luck in the future
Fantastic player big loss to rugby
Really feel sorry for Lukey, would have been one of our greatest players had he not been plagued by injury. Never got to see his full potential. Good luck in whatever you now do, perhaps Punditry.. you were great last Sat on Sky.
An absolute warrior and gentleman on and off the pitch etc …gutted etc…
Honestly with injury I feel he has just acted as a pr agent/player for the IRFU. I won’t miss him.
Nobend
Could have become a legend up there with the rest of them if he wasn’t so unlucky with injuries. Sad end to his career, but I wish him every luck in the future
Arguably the most talented/dynamic back not named Brian O’Driscoll to play for Ireland in the last 10 years. Reminiscent of Ferris retirement two years to the day, with Fitzgerald gone we can only hope O’Brien can make a comeback because his career is facing a similar trajectory right now.
28? Amazing how these guys age so fast. bod looks about 60 now
@ken and how do you prefer your guys to age?