There were plenty of thrills and spills across the board in Round 3 of the 2021 Women’s Six Nations, as the final positions in each Pool were decided after a points-laden day of action.
France booked their spot in the Final against England on Super Saturday after dispatching Ireland 56-15 in Dublin, with Les Bleues running in seven tries to finish top of Pool B.
Later in the day, Italy secured second spot in Pool A with a 41-20 success over Scotland in Glasgow, with Manuela Furlan helping herself to a hat-trick at Scotstoun, as the Azzurre set up a clash with Ireland in the 3rd/4th place playoff this weekend, while for Scotland it will be a 5th/6th place showdown against Wales.
As ever, a number of players caught the eye throughout the weekend and that was backed up with some big numbers so let’s take a look at who shone on a personal level in Round 3 of this year’s Championship.
15 – Carries by Manuela Furlan
Manuela Furlan was sublime in Glasgow this weekend, with the Italian flyer the standout performer across the two matches, with three tries and 188 metres gained from her 15 carries.
That works out at over 12 metres made every time she gained possession, which proved to be crucial in the Pool A affair, with the Scottish defence unable to keep her under control for large portions of the game.
Furlan got her side’s second score of the game just nine minutes into the affair to give Italy an early 12-0 advantage, before crossing for her second just before the hour mark.
And she capped off the perfect day just before the full-time hooter by completing her hat-trick, as Italy looked back to their best after going down to England last time out.
120 – Metres made by Caroline Boujard
It’s now two games, five tries for Caroline Boujard, as the French winger continued her fine form in this year’s Championship with another brace in her side’s victory over Ireland on Saturday.
The fleet-footed star was just too hot to handle for the home defence at Energia Park, as she scampered past her opponents with ease whenever the ball was in her grasp.
And although she only had eight carries in the match she managed to run for 120 metres, making it 15 metres every time she was in possession.
Furlan may have gained the most ground in Round 3, but Boujard and teammate Cyrielle Banet (144m) were also top performers from the weekend.
7 – Broken tackles by Cyrielle Banet
And Banet gained that much ground by evading almost every Ireland shirt that came near her on Saturday, with seven would-be tacklers left clutching at thin air as they tried to bring her to a halt.
Like Boujard, Banet also got on the scoresheet twice in Dublin, with five of the seven tries they scored coming from the back three, with full-back Emilie Boulard helping herself to a score midway through the first half.
But as well as having the pace, Banet also has the power to brush off any attention she may gain, and she did so time and time again to create time and space for her teammates to exploit in the 56-10 win.
Romane Menager did exactly that in the second half of that match, as she benefitted from a Banet break to cross for the Try of the Round for Round 3.
16 – Tackles made by Valeria Fedrighi
Italy may have been dominant with the ball in hand at Scotstoun on Saturday but they were just as powerful when they weren’t in possession, as they fought off a Scottish onslaught to maintain their advantage until the full-time whistle.
Every player from the Azzurre was putting themselves on the line to protect their lead during the 80 minutes in Glasgow, but none more so than Valeria Fedrighi.
The lock brought down 16 Scottish ball carriers as she led by example in the Italian backline, with a tackle success rate of 94%, as Bryan Easson’s side were denied time and time again.
100% – Goal kicking success rate for Helen Nelson
It may have been a disappointing day for Scotland, as they tasted defeat for the second time in succession, but it was a sublime performance from Helen Nelson from the kicking tee.
Having made the switch across from fly-half to centre for the visit of the Azzurre to accommodate Sarah Law at No.10, Nelson still excelled with the boot to notch ten of her side’s 20 points on Saturday.
Two penalties and a conversion from each of the Scottish tries saw Nelson slot every attempt she made in Glasgow, and she will no doubt be hungry for more when Scotland take on Wales this weekend looking to end their Championship on a high.
