A five-try haul to Cass Morley helped the Narrabri Blue Boars to a comfortable 47-24 victory against the Gunnedah Red Devils in last Saturday’s Central North Rugby Union (CNRU) women’s contest at Gunnedah Rugby Park.

The home side wore a special purple strip for the club’s ladies day, but the visiting team proved too good while donning its regular sky blue and dark blue strip.

The scoring see-sawed in the first half, with Narrabri holding a mere four-point advantage at half-time before racing to a big lead and finishing with seven tries to four.

Playing at fullback, Morley was the standout player as she repeatedly broke away when the Blue Boars sent the ball wide.

The defeat was Gunnedah’s third in succession, leaving the Red Devils in fifth place out of seven teams on the ladder while being just two points behind the third-placed Moree.

Narrabri meanwhile remained undefeated this year with its eighth victory, having also beaten Gunnedah 43-5 on May 3.

Morley scooted away for the opening try in the fourth minute, before a try to Gunnedah’s Rhi Adamson narrowed the gap to 7-5 in the lead-up to quarter-time.

Jean Littlewood made a huge run and scored a super solo try despite a last-ditch tackle from Morley, enabling the Red Devils to grab a short-lived 12-7 lead.

Morley’s next try set up a 14-12 lead for Narrabri, but Gunnedah regained the lead after capitalising on a penalty. Madisan Rogers took a quick tap and cleverly utilised the blindside, as she drew an opponent and sent Steph Lennon across in the left corner.

It was a memorable moment for Lennon who made her 50th appearance for the club despite battling a knee injury.

The Blue Boars gained a 21-17 half-time lead as Morley scurried away for her third try of the day.

Narrabri’s April Smith ran away to score in the opening seconds of the second half, and then back-to-back runaway tries to Morley helped the Blue Boars to a 42-17 lead at three-quarter time.

A bit of time was lost towards the end of the third term, as Narrabri forward Peta Cox was helped off the field after sustaining a facial injury amid ferocious body contact.

Narrabri began the final quarter with a bang as Belle Byrne dashed away to score, but then the complexion changed as the Red Devils had a lengthy run of possession as they recycled the ball.

The hosts were rewarded as Malama Leatigaga touched down for a forward’s try, which turned out to be the final five-pointer of the game.

Next up for Gunnedah is a clash with the Barraba Rams at Barraba this Saturday.