Venner scores her 12th try as Gloucester Hartpury lose unbeaten record but secure home semi-final

Gloucester Hartpury’s unbeaten record in the Premiership Women’s Rugby season ended in a 41-39 defeat to Trailfinders Women at Trailfinders Sports Club in Round 17, but Dan Murphy’s side still secured top spot and will host their semi-final with one round of the regular season remaining.

Mia Venner crossed for her 12th try of the PWR campaign in the first half, her pace and finishing form a continuation of the displays that earned her a recall to England contention during the Guinness Women’s Six Nations. The two points Trailfinders claimed were enough to make Friday night’s clash the closest any side had come to Gloucester Hartpury all season, following a one-point margin when the teams met earlier in the campaign at Kingsholm Stadium.

Despite the defeat, finishing top of the table means Gloucester Hartpury will be at home for their semi-final — a fixture that will pit them against Trailfinders Women once again. Venner was sanguine about the timing of the loss.

“I’d definitely rather lose now than in two weeks’ time,” she told RugbyPass. “Even though we’re so late in the season, we’ve got a lot of lessons to learn. We’ve had a lot of people, a lot of changes. We’ve got new leadership coming in, in the form of Becca [Sarah Beckett], and I thought she did an outstanding job. We’ve got two more weeks when we can fix things up. We haven’t hit our peak yet.”

Before the semi-final, Gloucester Hartpury host Bristol Bears in Round 18, a local derby that Murphy’s squad view as an opportunity to sharpen their game. Venner said the head coach was quick to redirect focus after the final whistle.

“We were talking in the huddle about how we’re going to fix up for the semi-final, and I thought it was quite good from Murph to say ‘no, we fix up on Tuesday’,” she said. “Our week starts on Tuesday, and that’s where we’re going to start our fix up. We love a home game, we love a local derby, so hopefully we get a good turnout.”

At 24, Venner is navigating a shift in her standing at the club. The departures of Zoe Stratford, Tatyana Heard, and Beckett to Sale Sharks at the end of the season, combined with injuries to senior players Alex Matthews and Natasha Hunt, have placed greater responsibility on her shoulders — both on and off the pitch.

“I feel like change is good for us,” Venner said. “It’s been quite consistent for the last three years. I think the change will be good. My role, I don’t think it changes too much. I do my job on the pitch and give as much advice as I can off it.”

With a home semi-final secured and a final league fixture to build momentum, Gloucester Hartpury will look to translate a difficult evening into a sharper, more cohesive unit before the knockout rounds begin.