Match Reaction - Steve Salvin
By James Fowler
23/1/23
Exeter Chiefs Women’s Assistant Coach Steve Salvin says he was ‘really happy’ with his side’s comprehensive 41-0 Allianz Premier 15s victory over the Bristol Bears at Sandy Park on Sunday.
Two first half tries from Cliodhna Moloney, plus a penalty from Liv McGoverne gave the Chiefs a 13-0 lead at the break, however the screw was well and truly turned in the second half, with a further four tries being scored through Lori Cramer, Hope Rogers, Silvia Turani and Claudia MacDonald, to secure a seventh victory in a row for the Chiefs.
Reflecting on the victory, Salvin although clearly delighted with the result, was keen to emphasise that he didn’t believe his side reached the outstanding high level of performance which they reached in the victory over Saracens the weekend before.
“Despite the scoreline we probably weren’t quite at the level we were at last week, and we’re very conscious that Bristol had a number of injuries coming into the game, so we know they’ll improve and be much stronger next time we play them a little bit further down the line, but 41-0 we would have taken that at the start of the day, so yeah happy.”
When coming off the back of a famous victory such as the one over Saracens, it can sometimes be difficult to replicate the same level of energy and motivation for the next game, however Salvin believes that the same level of focus was very much evident in his squad throughout the week leading into the Bristol game.
“The girls knew the importance of particularly last week and this week, we knew these two games were really significant and I don’t question how up for it or our level of motivation at all, we just had a few issues around our execution in the first half, but I think in the second half that started to stick a little bit more and we looked a little bit more cohesive, but I thought the attitude was exceptional.”
With the six tries scored in the victory over Bristol matching the six touchdowns secured against the reigning champions Saracens the week before, there is clearly a great deal to be positive about when it comes to the Chiefs attack, however as the lead defensive coach, Salvin was also keen to outline his delight at his side’s dominant defence which resulted in the Bears leaving Sandy Park without a point to their name.
“I think it’s the third one we’ve had this season now (no points conceded),” he added. “We push the standards hard both sides of the ball, so 41 points in attack, zero points in defence, it’s got a good look to it, so we’ll take that.”
Although the victory over Bristol was yet again built on another solid team performance, there was some outstanding individual performances on display with American international No.8 Rachel Johnson yet again showcasing her extraordinary power and pace, and Red Roses star MacDonald also showing why she’s considered one of the best players in the world. Salvin believes however that the level of performance shown by Johnson and MacDonald was ‘par for the course’ considering the exceptional high levels they set themselves.
“Exceptionally pleased with how they played today but that’s not unusual,” he continued. “The way those two are playing consistently at the moment that was sort of par for the course, so if they can maintain that level of performance and challenge everyone else to achieve that same level then we’ll be in a good place, but I think both of them were exceptional today.”
There was only one change from the starting XV which defeated Saracens, with Edel McMahon replacing the injured Maisy Allen, and Salvin was only to keen to praise the Irish international’s performance.
“We know Tricky (McMahon) is quality. She’s an unbelievably physical defender, you saw I think it was the first tackle of the day she absolutely belted someone off the kick chase and you know she’s always going to set the standard around our defence and she did exactly that today, so really pleased with how she went.”
The Chiefs have developed a world class pack of forwards which is littered with internal class, however what has become most impressive is the strength in depth within this area, with players of the quality of Turani, Emily Tuttosi and Charli Jacoby able to come off the bench in the style of the infamous Springbok ‘bomb squad’. Salvin who takes charge of the forwards was clearly delighted with how his pack have been performing.
“We’ve probably realistically got two front line packs that we can call on, and the work that we’re doing in training is so competitive that we’re seeing the returns of it today.
“Bristol threw things at us today that we had to adapt to, but we got our maul functioning when we got down into their 22, and I thought in the main, across the board the scrum was excellent to, so solid day.”
With the Chiefs next up facing struggling Wasps away in London, before taking on perennial underdogs the DMP Sharks at Sandy Park at the beginning of February, Salvin says there’s potentially an opportunity to rotate some players, and showcase the immense strength in depth available within this squad.
“It was always a case of playing this game and seeing where we felt we were off the back of it, being mindful of people picking up bumps and knocks and those sorts of things, so myself and Susie (Appleby) will talk that through over the next couple of days, but there’s a reasonable chance we’ll rotate things a little bit.
“Everyone needs opportunity, everyone needs to play, but if and when those changes are made it brings us strength in different ways, so it’s an exciting place to be.”