Ignore the scoreline: if you think Sandal Girls Under-18s were no match for Castleford then you didn’t see the game. Or you don’t know these girls.

Yorkshire’s strongest club completed an emphatic victory over the Senior Beasts but they were meant to work hard for the win by opponents who ran and tackled themselves to a standstill.
They may have been outnumbered out-manoeuvred and outscored but Sandal more than matched Castleford for effort and application on a day when every single player made a full contribution.
With just 15 players to the 23 of the home side, whose ranks were boosted by the presence of all their county and North of England players, Sandal were always up against it and unlikely to come away with a win.

As painful as it sometimes was, the experience – allied to a tough game at West Park Leeds a week earlier - will stand Sandal in good stead for the rest of the season. There is no doubt that the Beasts are now battle-hardened.
Strengthened by the return from injury of Alana Bainbridge, Beth Treasure and Olivia Hunter, together with the occasional availability of Grace White, Lorna Raycraft, Jodie Ounsley and Maz Zafar, Sandal have a great future ahead.
There were some exceptional individual performances against Castleford, with Liv Watson again setting a towering lead as captain to lead by example.
Molly Palmer looked every-inch a county-standard hooker throughout and the tenacious, if overly-industrious Abi Ledger terrorised the Cas attacking line before going off with a shoulder injury.

The match marked the return to form of Tahnee Holmes, who looked to have reclaimed her confidence with a fine stint at scrum-half and a strong effort at full-back, which included some telling line-clearing runs and two try-saving tackles.
Imy Coxon never took a backward step in the pack, nor did Naomi Garbutt who again made a big impression in only her second game for the Beasts. Courtney Nettleton, Jess Matthews and Jade Banks were also strong in a pack that scrummaged well.
In the backs, Megan Slater grafted tirelessly, despite taking a couple of borderline illegal heavy knocks; Becca Rogers once again demonstrated her versatility and appetite for the hard yards; and Maddie Thompson punched well above her weight with a spirited effort on the wing.

There was an outstanding full 40-minute contribution from Olivia Shillito, who was a deserved winner of the most improved player award having previously played just two minutes of rugby in the win at Eccles.
Sandal’s application under pressure was no better illustrated than the effort of Angel Gunn who, despite a brief spell in the sin-bin for retaliating to a head-high challenge, battled away constantly to take the top tackler award.
The player of the match award was awarded to Chloe Billington, a player whose defensive resolve and probing runs will surely have made a big impression on the watching Simon Middleton, the England Women’s coach.

Sandal Girls Under-18s: Liv Watson (c), Molly Palmer, Courtney Nettleton, Jess Matthews, Naomi Garbutt, Angel Gunn; Tahnee Holmes, Abi Ledger; Chloe Billington, Imy Coxon, Megan Slater, Maddie Thomson, Becca Rogers; Liv Shillito, Jade Banks.