The visitors started strongly and spent much of the opening 40 minutes camped inside the Fawley 22. Strong running lines, aggressive defence and a solid set piece gave Salisbury a platform to dominate territory and possession. While the scoreboard reflected that control, Salisbury will feel they left three or four good scoring opportunities unconverted.

Tries from Anais Wilman, Miren Tough and Ellen Staines, along with two conversions from Sarah Sperrin, gave Salisbury a 19–0 lead at half-time.

The second half was a scrappier affair, with Salisbury conceding too many penalties and allowing Fawley a route back into the game with a soft try. Credit to the hosts, who continued to battle throughout and never stopped competing.

Despite not being at their best after the break, Salisbury took their chances well. Alice Dobbs crossed shortly after coming off the bench, while further tries from Sarah Sperrin, Anais Wilman, Faye Trant and Alissa Chisholm completed the scoring. Sperrin added a further conversion to finish with three successful kicks from the tee.

The final two tries came from textbook backline play and ensured Salisbury finished the game on a high, rounding off a strong team performance and another encouraging result on the road.

Jason Yarwood