Magnificent Mel shines as Valkyries vanquish Acklam

The Scarborough side got off to a strong start, with their attack making yards straight away, almost making it over the whitewash in the first few minutes only to be stopped just short by Acklam’s determined defence.

Laura Welburn was the first Valkyries player to make it over the line, but the referee called the ball as held up and the try was disallowed.

It didn’t take much longer for the Valkyries to register points on the scoreboard though, with Rachel Thomson scoring a try under the posts just a few minutes later, converted by Mel Halstead, who had a stunning afternoon with the boot as she landed 13 of the her 14 conversion attempts.

The Valkyries continued in the same form for the rest of the first half, going into half-time winning 54-0.

In the second half, Acklam stuck at it and took advantage of a succession of penalties against Scarborough, driving deep into their 22.

The Valkyries held off for as long as they could, but Acklam’s attack eventually got through to score out on the wing.

The game finished with a few more tries from the Scarborough ladies to finish off with an impressive scoreline of 96-5.

Player of the match went to impressve scrum-half Thomson for her organisation at the back of the ruck and speed moving the ball away from the contact area, giving the Scarborough girls the best chance to break through Acklam’s defence.

Special mentions are due for props Hannah Lewis and Sam Knight for strong running, both of them breaking the Acklam line on several occasions, setting the backs up for the many tries that the Valkyries scored on the day.

STATS:

Try scorers:

Mel Halstead (4)

Aisling Robinson (3)

Jess Bray (2)

Sam Knight (2)

Hannah Lewis

Rachel Thomson

Casey Jordan

Conversions:

Mel Halstead (13)