Bristol Bears claimed their fourth bonus point win in a row in the Allianz Premier 15s, defeating Loughborough Lightning 57-22 to retake a spot in the top four ahead of the visit of fifth-placed Harlequins in the final match before the Six Nations break.
Bristol came out of the blocks quickly in Loughborough as Grace Crompton bagged a brace in the first four minutes. Amber Reed burst through the line within a minute of kick-off to set up her first. Ella Lovibond and Courtney Keight combined to run it from their own try line before Crompton finished it off for her second.
Elinor Snowsill and Lark Davies got the Bears the bonus point tries just after 20 minutes but again, Bristol’s defence was allowing Loughborough into the game. Two scores for Fran Goldthorp in the corner looked too easy as they were finding the gaps in the defence.
The Bears kept showing the attacking flair that they pride themselves on throughout the first half. A perfect backs move from the line out found Lovibond with space to run into before she bounced off two tacklers to dot down for another try.
Sarah Bern finished the half in style, leaping like a salmon over the ruck for one of the most athletic tries you’ll see. Bristol 40-10 ahead at half-time away from home.
Crompton secured her hat-trick by scything through the Loughborough line at halfway and turning on the afterburners to get to the line.
The second half didn’t prove to be the try-fest we had enjoyed in the first. But Simi Pam broke the deadlock late on, making a signature big carry up the middle before the ball went wide the see Deborah Wills score in the corner.
Georgina Tasker and Sally Williams claimed two quick tries for Loughborough, catching the Bears resting on their laurels. Defensive frailties have been a constant theme this season, so seeing four tries being conceded in a dominant performance will surely worry Dave Ward.
Pam wrapped up her phenomenal performance with one final try on the 80th minute, sneaking over through the middle.
"We came out firing. We were relentless. To score 40 points in one half is brilliant, especially against a team like Loughborough," said head coach Dave Ward.
After her Red Roses call-up, captain Reed topped a great personal week with a Player of the Match performance. "Amber was fantastic today in terms of distribution and defensively as well. The fact that Loughborough did score – we got under the posts, she came up with a plan, and we went and executed it, which is credit to her leadership," added Ward.
Attention will undoubtedly turn to the crucial clash next weekend. "We want to be looking at the league table and firmly be in fourth. We need to go and beat Quins. We need the people to come down and support us at Shaftesbury Park."
Harlequins’ loss to Exeter means Bristol have leapfrogged them into the play-off spots but only one point separates the two teams in the table ahead of Saturday's fixture (kick-off: 12:30), with the game also live on BBC Sport.
