Image Credit: Darren Greenhalgh
The first round of the group stages of the Betfred Women’s Challenge Cup got underway this weekend as Wigan Warriors began their defence of the competition in their opening match against Featherstone Rovers.
The Warriors took little time getting started, opening the scoring within four minutes as captain Georgia Wilson took advantage of a knock-on from Featherstone’s Holly Waddington.
Just three minutes later, Wilson surged over the line once again, setting the tone for what would be a relentless attacking game from the Warriors.
Rovers got their only points of the game after forcing a knock-on 15 metres from the Warriors’ line, with Hooker Alyssa Courtney going over and Waddington adding the conversion.
But the Cherry and Whites were ruthless in their attacking, finishing with a scoreline of 6-78 which included hat-tricks from Isabel Rowe and Anna Davies, and braces for Lucie Sams and Cerys Jones.
Putting on the most dominant display this weekend was Leeds Rhinos, who met Leigh Leopards at Leigh Miners Rangers on Saturday (4 April).
The Rhinos’ attacking play did not allow the Leopards a start, preventing them from putting any points on the board.
Ruby Enright made an immediate impact on her return from a long injury layoff, scoring in the corner within two minutes – the first of a later hat-trick.
Despite some errors in the first 20, huge efforts from the Rhinos’ defence made it impossible for the hosts to make use of the possession gifted to them, and Leeds continued with their scoring.
The Rhinos headed into the second half with a 24-point lead, with the second stage of the game following a similar pattern to the first.
A series of contributions to the scoreline saw the Rhinos head home with a huge win at 0-82, as Lucy Murray wrapped up the game with a brace in the closing stages, and Tally Bryer completed her 100% kicking record with seven conversions from seven.
The final game of the weekend saw Huddersfield Giants host St Helens at Laund Hill.
Saints kicked off the scoring at the 8-minute mark as Katie Mottershead went over with Faye Gaskin adding the conversion.
With control of the game, the Red V continued to add to their tally as Shona Hoyle-Holdsworth powered over from 10 metres out.
The Giants fought back, making it 6-10 going into the second half after Mollie Iceton crashed into the left corner, but Vicky Whitfield helped St Helens pick up where they left off, scoring 4 minutes into the second 40.
Huddersfield continued to fight back, putting another 8 points on the board after a try from Amelia Brown and a second for Iceton, but it wasn’t enough to fight off the dominant Saints who left Laund Hill with a 14-44 victory.
