Winning Super Series start for France

Six Nations Champions France came back from behind to win their first Super Series fixture against the United States.

Published by John Birch, July 2nd, 2016

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Winning Super Series start for France

Report from USA Rugby: The United States were undone by their own errors and a three-try, second-half blitz from Women's RBS 6 Nations Champion France Friday in the teams' first match of the Women's Rugby Super Series at Regional Athletic Complex, a 19-13 loss for the home side.

Fly half Kimber Rozier scored a try and kicked for an extra three points for Pete Steinberg's Eagles, but a yellow card to Saskia Morgan at the end of the first half afforded extra space on the field for France to dot down twice in the span of three minutes. The Eagles will get back to work Tuesday, July 5, when they play Canada, winner of the first WRSS matchup against England in Salt Lake City. Tuesday's match will kick off live on The Rugby Channel at 5 p.m. MT.

In their first test on home soil since the 2013 Nations Cup tournament, the Eagles came out of the locker room swinging. France did not help its cause with a bungled opening restart, and the U.S. enjoyed possession for nearly eight minutes straight. Debutantes Morgan and Christiane Pheil gained meters with their first touches, and a 10-meter scrum was followed up with a charging run from No. 8 Jordan Gray to get close to the line. Prop Hope Rogers followed suit through three defenders before the ball popped out to Rozier for the dummy and match-opening try.

The Eagles could have doubled the 5-0 advantage in the ensuing minutes, gifted possession from France's restart. Quick hands to keep the ball moving in the face of a stingy French defence found lock Alicia Washington with space on the wing, but a knock ended the U.S. attack. France nearly lost the ball in the try zone from the set piece, but recovered to give the Eagles a put-in and win a penalty a phase later.

The set-piece and open-field errors had been set up through decisions to go for five points rather than three, and captain Stacey Bridges opted for Rozier to reward the team for its efforts in the 23rd minute. The fly half, who had earlier sent a conversion attempt into the right upright, kicked the ball over from 40 meters for an 8-0 lead.

Following a talk between the match official and France captain Mignot Gaëlle in the 29th minute, France cleaned up its act and put the U.S. under a heap of pressure for the final 10 minutes of the first half. The Eagles were pinned in their defensive corner for several minutes, conceding penalties and set pieces, but held up Gaëlle in the only run to cross the line. Morgan was shown yellow as the clock struck the 40th minute, but the Eagles were able to escape the half with an 8-0 lead intact.

France kept on the pedal in the second half with a 15-on-14 advantage, and several Eagles, including wing Cheta Emba and outside center Jane Paar, showed off their defensive prowess to stem the attack when it inched towards the red zone. The wing's tackle in the corner in the 46th minute preceded Bridges' lineout take and 30-meter run, but the lock lost the ball before she reached midfield.

Replacement scrum half Pauline Bourdon took the ball from the ensuing scrum at the Eagles' 10 all the way to the try zone, and No. 8 Romane Menager doubled the scoring tally with a try three minutes later for a 12-8 France lead.

Morgan reentered the field of play to shore up the Eagles' defence and offer more pace on the wing, but penalty troubles continued to haunt the U.S. France wing Julie Billes was stopped short of a try with a low pass in the 62nd minute, but the play was called back to the other side of the pitch as the referee was playing an advantage. The driving maul from France's lineout was enough for replacement prop Manon Bigot to go over the line to increase the advantage to 19-8.

"We had seven trips to the 22 in the first half and we had one try," Steinberg said post-match. "It's just not enough. We knew France would be able to come back and do something. We left too many points on the field."

Naya Tapper, capped in both 15s and sevens after an appearance with the Women's Eagles Sevens on the 2015-16 HSBC World Rugby Women's Sevens Series, brought the Eagles back within contention with her first touch of the match, replacing Emba in the 67th minute. The Eagles won a lineout at the 10 and Gray powered over a couple defenders in the middle, showing control to offload to Paar simultaneously. The centre quickly found Rozier, who weighted a pass to Tapper for the second U.S. try and 19-13 score line.

The Eagles had plenty of chances to cash in on France's penalties in the final 10 minutes, with substitutes pouring on the pressure with fresh legs and poise, but could not find their way over the line despite two 80th-minute yellow cards to France to drop the first match of the Women's Rugby Super Series.

"I think the game was lost on our ability to take the opportunities that we had," Steinberg said following the match. "There were moments of the game where we played really well but what we didn't do was take our opportunities, so what we have to do is be ruthless.

"Our attacking structure was really good and our defensive structure grew. We knew coming into this Series that our bench would make the difference. The difference for us this year relative to last year is the fact our depth is so much better. We're getting the depth we need for 80 minutes, and it showed at the end of the game."

United States: 1. Tiffany Faaee (Benson @ 49') ; 2. Kathryn Augustyn (Pankey @ 64') ; 3. Hope Rogers ; 4. Stacey Bridges ; 5. Alycia Washington (Kinsella @ 52') ; 6. Christiane Pheil ; 7. Joanna Kitlinski (Cairns @ 52') ; 8. Jordan Gray ; 9. Deven Owsiany (Lui @ 59') ; 10. Kimberly Rozier ; 11. Cheta Emba (Tapper @ 66') ; 12. Sylvia Braaten ; 13. Jane Paar ; 14. Saskia Morgan ; 15. Jessica Wooden; Women's Eagles | Reserves ; 16. Samantha Pankey ; 17. Catherine Benson ; 18. Jamila Reinhardt ; 19. Molly Kinsella ; 20. Elizabeth Cairns ; 21. Jennifer Lui ; 22. Megan Foster ; 23. Naya Tapper

Tries: Rozier, Tapper; Penalties: Rozier; Discipline: Morgan (Yellow)

France: 1. Lise Arricastre (Carricaburu @ 54') ; 2. Mignot Gaëlle (C) (Bigot @ 57') ; 3. Julie Duval (Clermidy @ 71') ; 4. Manon Andre (N'Diaya @ 43') ; 5. Céline Ferer ; 6. Pauline Soulard ; 7. Gaëlle Hermet ; 8. Romane Menager (Mathieu @ 64') ; 9. Yanna Rivoalen (Bourdon @ 43') ; 10. Audrey Abadie (Boujard @ 43') ; 11. Julie Billes ; 12. Lucille Godiveau (Boudaud @ 71') ; 13. Carla Neissen ; 14. Camille Cabalou ; 15. Laura Delas; France | Reserves ; 16. Manon Bigot ; 17. Laure Clermidy ; 18. Emilie Mathieu ; 19. Safi N'Diaye ; 20. Pauline Bourdon ; 21. Camille Boudaud ; 22. Caroline Boujard ; 23. Patricia Carricaburu;

Tries: Bourdon, Menager, Bigot; Conversions: Cabalou (2); Discipline: N'Diaye (Yellow), Cabalou (Yellow)

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