Match Report: Loughborough Lightning 28 – 37 Sale Sharks

A youthful Loughborough Lightning side opened their PWR: The Cup campaign with a spirited performance but came out on the wrong side of the result against Sale Sharks.

Lightning were struck by the loss of captain Daisy Hibbert-Jones the morning of the game due to illness, as a late squad reshuffle saw Carmela Morrall lead the side and five players make their debuts across the contest at Loughborough University. 

Despite both of Lightning’s starting half-backs Meg Davey Lia Green commencing their 2025/26 seasons with tries, it was Sale who went in at the break ahead on the scoreboard with Sharifa Kosolo crossing the line twice, either side of a Holly Thorpe effort.

Fine second-half tries from wingers Ellen Scantlebury and Cieron Bell kept Lightning in the contest, but it was the visitors who kicked their campaign off with a win as Milly Hyndman and Polly Bowman crossed the line, Thorpe landed her second of the contest and Kasolo completed her hat-trick.

FIRST HALF

Playing back at Loughborough University’s newly relaid rubber crumb pitch while cinch Stadium at Franklin’s Gardens is out of action while being used as a host venue for the Rugby World Cup, a strong swelling of people filled the sidelines for Lightning’s first game since February.

It was two former Lightning players combined for the game’s opening score as Nikita Prothero and Tysh Harper made inroads before Kasolo applied the finishing touch.

Haineala Lutui, fresh from an impressive summer on England U20 duty, wasted little time in turning heads and bruising shoulders on debut with a series of bludgeoning carries as the hosts restored some control to proceedings.

The scores were levelled approaching the game’s quarter-way point and it all started right on Lightning’s own line when Kendall Waudby pounced to burgle the ball at a breakdown and win a penalty.

A slick backs move followed from the resulting lineout that saw Scantlebury burst through a gap. After a patient period of phase play in the 22, Davey latched onto an offload off the deck from Ellie Tromans to cross over by the posts giving Green a tap-in conversion.

Nathan Smith‘s side moved ahead on the scoreboard after 28 minutes when Keevy Fitzpatrick cantered up centre field and Lightning swarmed with a series of carries and before Sale could reset, Green spotted a gap and backed herself to cross the line and added the extras for good measure. 

However, it was Sale who went in at the break three points ahead as Thorpe and Kasolo both added tries in the same left-hand corner, with both tricky conversions being missed.

SECOND HALF

The second half saw four more Lightning players make their debuts for the club. Polly Peterson – who is on dual registration with Buckingham Swans – arrived at hooker and 18-year-old Ashton Adcock entered proceedings at scrum-half. Tamsin Baynes appeared in the first half as a HIA replacement for Lucy Finch before permanently entering the field after the break.

Following Hibbert-Jones’ withdrawal, Lottie Buffery-Latham received a phone call summoning her to stop a journey north to watch Wales tackle Scotland in the World Cup and instead spent her afternoon making her senior debut for Lightning.

Mixed in with the debuts was a long list of players making their Loughborough returns from injury, including Grace Clifford’s first outing in an African Violet shirt for 812 days.

Sale’s setpiece was the difference between the two sides and it delivered the first blow of the second period when Hyndman drove over from a lineout.

The response was swift, and eye-catching. Abbie Brown, playing her first Loughborough game in nearly three-and-a-half years, shifted the ball wide for Scantlebury to burn down the left wing and finish in the corner. Green landed a superb conversion.

Brown went close to providing a second assist when a fleet-footed break was followed by a pass five metres from the line that was unfortunately intercepted.

Kasolo struck from close range shortly after to compound the near miss, only for Lightning to land a fourth try when Bell finished in the corner after a fine offload from Scantlebury.

Hopes of a late winner were dampened when Thorpe squirmed over in the left corner as Lightning’s attentions now turn to the trip to Lichfield on Sunday 31 August to take on Leicester Tigers. 

LINE UPS:

LIGHTNING: 15 Brown, 14 Clarke, 13 Tromans, 12 Morrall (c), 11 Scantlebury, 10 Green, 9 Davey; 1 Curphey, 2 Calladine, 3 Belisle, 4 Fitzpatrick, 5 Lutui, 6 Waudby, 7 E.Roberts, 8 Finch.
Replacements: 16 Peterson, 17 Williams, 18 Clifford, 19 Baynes, 20 Buffery-Latham, 21 Adcock, 22 Luthayi, 23 Bell.

SHARKS: 15 Wilkins, 14 Prothero, 13 Perrin, 12 Howard, 11 Thorpe, 10 Duffy (cc), 9 Relf; 1 Harper, 2 Fielding (cc), 3 Roach, 4 Antwis, 5 Fray, 6 Cowan, 7 Childs, 8 Kasolo.
Replacements: 16 Hyndman, 17 James, 18 Benavent, 19 Bowman, 20 Spencer, 21 Campbell, 22 Irwin, 23 Wood.