BWSL: Round 7 Preview

It’s the final round of the regular season in the Betfred Women’s Super League with teams battling to secure a strong position in the standings ahead of the competition’s next stage.

Huddersfield Giants head into the weekend sitting fifth on six points, level with fourth-placed York Valkyrie.

The Giants now face a tough test against second-placed Leeds Rhinos as they look to build on their positive start to the season and finish the regular campaign on a high (Laund Hill, KO 2pm).

Relishing the challenge is Huddersfield Giants Hooker and former Rhinos Player Sam Hulme:

“I’m feeling really good, I like playing Leeds, playing against my former teammates and my friends, it’s always a good competition.

“We’ve had some good results against them in the past and competitive games.

“That’s all we want really is competitive games against the top four so I’m feeling good, we’ve got a good squad at the weekend.

“They’re a group of good players at Leeds I think we know that Lois [Naidole] who joined from us last year is a great player and a massive threat, she’s definitely one we need to keep an eye on.

“Mel Howard I think can’t go without a mention, she’s a great player.

“Similar to Jake Connor from their men’s side, she just creates somethings out of nothings, I think we need to be aware of that and not give her the opportunity to do that.”

The Giants have produced a series of strong performances this season and will be looking to carry that form into the next phase of the campaign, with the league splitting into the top four and bottom four after this weekend.

“It’s been a bit of a different season, I think we’ve had some really great successes, we came really close, within two points of St Helens so that was a great performance for us,” added Hulme.

“We’ve had a bit of a dip where we’ve played a couple of the teams that we’d expect to get a result from and although we’ve come away with the result we’ve been disappointed.

“We’ve got a new manager so there’s been some really big changes and that’s made a massive difference. I would say it’s been a bit of a rollercoaster so far.”

For Hulme, the end to the season is about growth after taking on a new position this year:

“Personally, I just want to enjoy it, I’m playing a new position in the hooker role as opposed to the half back, although I’ve played a bit of both.

“I just want to develop my own skillset in that area and try and become a bit of an engine in the middle for the team.

“Being a bit of a voice in that pack is probably one of my big goals this season personally.

“Obviously the league split is pending so when that happens then we’ll know who we’re definitely playing and be able to just really dig in at the end of the season.”

On Saturday, St Helens welcome Leigh Leopards to Brewdog Stadium (KO 2pm). The Leopards will be aiming to get points on the board this time around against the Saints after continuing to narrow the scorelines in their successive meets.

Elsewhere, Wigan Warriors host Featherstone Rovers as they fight to keep their unbeaten streak alive in the competition (Edge Hall Road Community Stadium, KO 2pm).

The Warriors have been on formidable form so far and will be hoping they can round off the regular season undefeated.

The final fixture of the regular season sees Barrow Raiders take on York Valkyrie (Speed Competitions Stadium, KO 3pm).

The Raiders will be fighting to see if they can secure their first victory of the season before the league splits for the next phase of the campaign.

Betfred Women’s Super League Round 7 Fixtures:

Saturday 11 July

St Helens v Leigh Leopards – The Brewdog Stadium, KO 2pm

Wigan Warriors v Featherstone Rovers – Edge Hall Road Community Stadium, KO 2pm

Sunday 12 July

Huddersfield Giants v Leeds Rhinos – Laund Hill, KO 2pm

Barrow Raiders v York Valkyrie – Speed Competitions Stadium, KO 3pm