Zackary proud despite narrow defeat
By Harry Scott-Munro
1/12/20
Exeter Chiefs flanker Kate Zackary was optimistic following her side’s tight loss to Wasps Ladies in their latest Allianz Premier 15s clash at Sandy Park.
Converted tries from Patricia Garcia and McKinley Hunt were matched with tries from Claudia Macdonald and Maud Muir, before Wasps took their chance in the second half, Meg Jones adding a penalty, before she converted a try from Ellie Kildunne to seal a 24-14 victory.
It was a tough outcome on the Chiefs, who controlled large part of the game and were unlucky not to get any reward for their on-field efforts.
Post-game, American captain Zackary was philosophical, stating: "It’s a tough outcome at the end of the game but honestly, we’re a little disappointed in a few areas. Overall, we played our most consecutive strong minutes in the first half especially. Second half, a few let downs, but I think we just got a little tired."
After falling behind early on, the Chiefs rallied to hold a 14-7 advantage before Muir’s try right on half-time. Zackary and her back-row colleagues Linde Van der Velden and Ebony Jefferies were instrumental in the strong performance, working in tandem both in attack and defence.
"We’ve been working on what our pack animal is," explained Zackary. "We’re calling the backrow lionesses. People work hard for the pack and do what the pack needs and that was our goal going into this game.
"Do we need to get over the ball? Do we need to push on in defence? Whatever the team needed, we just wanted to provide that and so that helped us hone in on some of those breakdowns."
Those breakdowns that Zackary alludes to have been a regular source of possession for the Chiefs so far this season, Zackary herself leading the way with countless turnovers across the first six games of the season.
Despite the Chiefs misfortune surrounding Wasps third score, it was still a hugely promising afternoon for the side, as they went toe-to-toe with a team loaded with experience at this level.
Zackary also heaped praise on the players on the bench, all of whom made an impact after entering the action:
"Some of the talent we had coming off the bench today, people like Sachiko [Kato} and Jennine [Duncan] coming back from injury, making huge impacts. Kayleigh [Armstrong] coming in and getting a steal right off the bat so, looking ahead, it’s about us continuing to build out those impact subs and playing for as many minutes as we can and looking to up the physicality."
Zackary was buoyed by that impact, confidently declaring that she thought her team had "one of the strongest benches in the whole league."
Looking at her time so far in the South West, Zackary was full of praise for the culture and ethos around the team.
"It’s phenomenal," she added. "I’m personally just loving the fact that we’re getting to play rugby in a full-time environment for 15s especially.
"Exeter’s really taken care of us and I’ve loved it!" mused Zackary, before admitting that she wished someone would "turn the heat back on!" as the winter chill begins to take hold.