ON an historic night when Australia’s most talented men’s and women’s rugby league players shared the stage at Allianz Stadium, it was the Women’s All Stars who shone with a dominant 24-0 display over the Indigenous Women’s All Stars.
With co-captain and Queensland representative Ali Brigginshaw leading by example, the Women’s All Stars scored five unanswered tries in the curtain-raiser to the Mid-Season Test between Australia and New Zealand, the first time the Australian women have played a curtain-raiser to a Kangaroos Test.
Brigginshaw scored a brilliant individual try early in the second 25-minute half and scored two goals from five conversion attempts.
“It was overwhelming … surreal,” Brigginshaw said. “To get to play before the men was a big honour.”
Indigenous Women’s All Stars captain Julie Young agreed: “Playing out here before the Test is an unbelievable feeling … amazing. I feel blessed.
“I was really proud of the girls despite the scoreline – they really dug in and never gave up.
“We were up against a side that included a lot of my Jillaroos team-mates from the World Cup winning side so they were world class.”
The Women’s All Stars led 14-0 at the halftime break after three tries in the space of nine minutes.
Second-rower Renae Kunst barged across the line in the eighth minute to open their account, which was converted by Brigginshaw.
Just three minutes later, the Women’s All Stars took the score to 10-0 with winger Tegan Chandler making the most of a well-placed bomb by halfback Maddie Studdon.
In the 17th minute they extended their lead to 14-0 with centre Emily Andrews scoring their third and last before the break.
Four minutes after Brigginshaw scored in the second half, centre Karina Brown added another four points scoring from a chip kick by Studdon against an Indigenous Women’s All Stars side that made them work hard for every point.
Women’s All Stars 24 (Renae Kunst, Tegan Chandler, Emily Andrews, Ali Brigginshaw, Karina Brown tries; Ali Brigginshaw 2 goals) def Indigenous Women’s All Stars 0
