Lightning have ‘come a long way as a team’, says Smith

Head coach Nathan Smith highlighted the progress his Loughborough Lightning side has made following a home defeat to Exeter Chiefs.

With five minutes to play at cinch Stadium at Franklin’s Gardens on Saturday afternoon, the hosts trailed by only three points, and with a two-player advantage they were well placed to secure a comeback victory.

However, last season’s Allianz Premiership Women’s Rugby runners-up showed their class by scoring with the final play of the game to secure a 27-19 victory.

While the late blow left a sour taste in the mouth for Lightning, the result and the performance were a far cry from last season’s corresponding fixture when the side in African Violet were humbled 54-5 in front of their own fans at Epinal Way.

“We played the same fixture last year and it wasn’t a fair fight, it certainly was today,” said Smith, who took charge of Lightning in the summer.

“I am really proud of the overall performance from the team. I thought it was a better performance than what we put out against Sale. I am proud of the girls’ efforts against Exeter but also over this block of games.

Exeter opened a two-try lead in the first half through Maisy Allen and Alex Tessier before Emma Wassell’s effort cut the half-time gap to five.

The second half saw plenty of scoring action as Eilidh Sinclair struck for Exeter before Kathryn Treder rumbled over for Loughborough. Daleaka Menin kept Chiefs’ noses in front, then a penalty try for Smith’s side raised hopes of a thrilling finale only for Sinclair to dot down in the corner to deny Lightning a losing bonus point they richly deserved.

In just her third match since returning from an injury that ruled her out of Red Roses duty in the Autumn, flanker Sadia Kabeya produced a remarkable performance full of defensive grit and endeavour.

Smith said: “Sadia is world class. We want to make her one of the best players in the world, and she has shown all the ingredients that she can be. I thought she was fantastic around the park.

“She was great against Sale but I think she stepped up again today. With Sadia, I don’t think we’ve scratched the surface with her.

Lightning had to contend with losing scrum-half Meg Davey to a head injury midway through the first half but it presented an extended opportunity for Jess Weaver to impress as she made her fifth league appearance of the season as a replacement.

“It was a tough one for MJ as she has been playing some good stuff lately,” Smith explained. “But we’re really lucky that Jess Weaver is on the bench and she played really well when she came on.

“She’s not played a lot of minutes since the start of the Premiership but I thought she was very good when she came on. It’s good that we’re developing a bit of depth as well.”

Lightning take a two-week break from action over Christmas before returning for another stern test away at reigning champions Gloucester-Hartpury on 6 January.

Smith is confident off the back of recent performances that his side can compete with the very best in the new year.

“We’ve come a long way as a team, especially defensively at the moment,” he said. “I don’t think we had the ball for 20 minutes in the first half. So, I hope they enjoy defending, because they’re doing a lot of it at the moment!

“Again, it was a step up from where we were against Sale and we’ve got to take real positives from it. When we come back after Christmas, we should be a match for anybody.”