Rugby Europe Trophy 2022/23
Portugal hosted and beat Finland (39-0), for the second round of the Rugby Europe Trophy 2022/23.
Written by: Nuno Madeira do O
The best part: Second Rugby Europe Trophy match, second victory for Portugal. This time, 39 points against nothing and top of the table to go with it. Portugal has 110 points scored, having only conceded 5. Spectacular.
The not-so-good part: Despite the score, Portugal made some handling mistakes that cost a few points. It wasn’t problematic but it can be of importance against stronger teams.
Player of the match: Portugal had several players with good performances. The Portuguese scrum continues to be very dominant and the first row (Carlota Torres – Inês Marques – Neuza Reis) played very well. Ana Freire (second row) performed also at a high level, with a very physical match. From the bench, Adelina Costa and Ana Teresa Santos had a good impact on the match with the latter increasing the tempo from the ruck and destabilising the Finnish defence. However, the player of the match was Mariana Marques. What a match from the Centre! Three tries, and countless metres made. Mariana can read the game like no other and combines that with great speed, making it almost impossible for someone to stop her. Impressive.
Portugal beat Finland in Jamor (Lisbon). Both teams came from victories, with the Lobas beating Belgium away (5-71) and Finland beating Germany at home by 43-5.
Finland started the match on top, putting the Portuguese line under intense pressure. With a very strong pack, Finland tried to progress on the pitch through the centre. However, Portugal’s defence played very well, with good tackles, that didn’t let the offensive effort translate to points.
With the 7th minute came the first try: Mariana Santos gained 40 metres on the left wing and allowed for Portugal to set camp in the Finnish half. After several phases, Mariana Marques appeared on the left wing, and with the Finnish team focused on the central channels, scored unopposed. Try not converted and 5-0 for the home team.
After the try, Finland tried to resume their attacking operations but all attempts were thwarted by the Portuguese defence. It took another 10 minutes for Portugal to cross the halfway line. Maria João Costa (with a line break of 70m) almost went all the way but it was stopped near the 5m line. No points but it set the scene for what was about to come. With Portugal playing inside the Finnish half, after an amazing grubber, Inês Spínola scored on the right wing. 10-0 with 15 minutes to go in the first half.
Two minutes later, another Portuguese try, this time by Mariana Santos. Portugal attacked through the wings a lot and explored Finland’s difficulty in defending wide. A good offensive manoeuvre by the Portuguese attack with the ball passing my Mariana Marques and Daniela Correia before arriving to Mariana Santos. A good 25m ran with no one near her.
These two tries in a row made a dent in the Finnish morale that stopped attacking. At the 34th minute, Sara Moreira scored Portugal’s fourth try, after a good line out. At the break, 20-0 for Portugal and a convincing display from the Lobas.
Finland started the second half trying to attack but couldn’t break Portugal’s defence and, at the 46th minute, the home team scored again. Mariana Marques with a great dummy, opened a crater in the Finnish defence and scored unopposed (25-0). After this try, Finland spent more time inside the Portuguese half but without creating any real danger. At the 62nd minute, Mariana Marques received the ball well inside the Portuguese half and off she went. Four defenders and 70m later, she crossed the try line unopposed and scored her third try of the afternoon. 32-0 with 16 minutes to play.
Until the end, still time for Adelina Costa to score the last try of the match and for Isabel Ozório to convert it for the final score. 39-0 for Portugal and a very consistent performance from the Portuguese team.
