The RN Senior Women stepped up first in the annual fixture against The Marine Nationale played on a glorious day in Vannes. The people of Brittany coming out in force to watch Le Crunch in the Stade de la Rabine with entertainment from the Band of The Marine Nationale.
Only the 3rd fixture of the season the starting team featured 7 new caps with the potential for 2 more to come off the bench.
From the Kick off the French pin the Royal Navy Women down in their own 22, with the strong breeze making it difficult to gain any territory off the boot. Both defenses were rock solid with hard tackles being made by MA Megan Musgrave and the centre partnership of LPT Suz Badger and LH Rose Di...
The Stade de la Rabine, Vannes is the 4th venue used by French. The match has previously been hosted in Paris, Toulon and now Vannes. With the rain staying away and the Marine Nationale pipes and drum band entertaining the crowd, the atmosphere in the ground was electric.
Leading his team out as Captain, Ben Priddey gained his 32 cap (9th against France) making him the 2nd most capped player behind Head Coach Dave Pascoe on 35. Memories of victory in France are quite distant, with only Backs Coach Buinimasi having won in 2008 and the RN outfit has been significantly refreshed with 8 new caps in the starting 15.
After the roar of the anthems had settled, the French kick-off and afte...
The Royal Navy Senior Men travel to Vannes this weekend thinking only of squaring the score of 'Le Crunch' wins with Marine Nationale.
After a 2 year hiatus enforced by the global pandemic the Royal Navy travel to Brittany aiming to tie the overall wins in their annual fixture with Marine Nationale to 8 a piece. There is little love lost during the 80 minutes on field between the two Navies and the fixture in France is always guaranteed to have a partisan and raucous atmosphere. This year sees the match played in the Walled city of Vannes for the first time, previously it has been in the Mediterranean port city of Toulon and the capital, Paris.
The match is not only an opportu...
The 12th of March 2022 will see the Royal Navy Senior Women travel to Vannes, France, for their 10 th meeting with the Marine Nationale for the “Entente Cordiale” Trophy.
The trophy has already grown a rich heritage and is a highlight of the season for both Navy's Women's Rugby sides. A long way has been travelled by women's rugby generally since the two sides met on the HMS Drake picth in 2011 for a twelve a side encounter, with both sides having developed greater depth of talent and a catalogue of milestones. The trophy has been competed for annually ever since with the fixture alternating between the UK and France ever since up until 2019, which was...
The RNRU Women will have a new captain when they take to the pitch against the Marine Nationale in France on Saturday.
Sub Lieutenant Abi Ashby will be the person that the team will look to for on field leadership for the first time in a capped match when she makes her first appearance in an 'Entente Cordial' match. With the match renowned as being a cauldron of emotions she will need to keep a level head and provide a guiding presence for her team mates who will all be fully charged and hoping to win the trophy for the first time.
An Air Engineer Officer who is currently working on the Commando Helicopter Force, Abi joined the Navy three and a half years ago after a rugby educatio...
