Trailfinders Women overwhelm Harlequins 72–19 in West London derby

Trailfinders Women recorded their biggest victory in three years by beating Harlequins 72–19 in the JAECOO PWR Next Gen Cup. The match was played at Trailfinders Sports Club in Ealing on Saturday, 3 October, with the club publishing its full report on 5 October.

The home side began decisively. Amanda McQuade scored the opening try from a maul in the fourth minute, and Jess Cooksey added another four minutes later. Scarlet Down then crossed after another powerful maul, while Ruby Tui and Bo Westcombe Evans also scored before the interval.

Harlequins replied through tries from Maja Meuller and Joy Okechukwu. Trailfinders led 27–12 after 40 minutes, but the contest had not yet been settled. The closing stages of the first half also brought a yellow card for Tui following a high tackle.

Second-half breakthrough

Ealing’s advantage grew quickly after the restart. Hayley Jones benefited from another effective maul, before Rosie Inman intercepted a pass and ran about 80 yards to score. It was a notable afternoon for the fly-half, who made her 50th appearance for Trailfinders Women. According to the pre-match team announcement, she became only the second player to reach that milestone for the club.

Westcombe Evans was the leading try scorer with a hat-trick. McQuade and Tui each crossed twice, while Cooksey, Down, Jones, Inman and Cassandra Tuffnail also added tries. Inman converted six of the scores. Harlequins found one further second-half try through Sarah Parry, but they could not stop the home side’s repeated attacks.

The match in numbers

Trailfinders scored 12 tries in total: five before the break and seven in the second half. Harlequins replied with three tries and two conversions. The margin was not created by one short burst. Ealing scored throughout both halves, using both the driving maul and quick movement into wider channels.

The official report also shows how the scoring responsibility was shared. Eight Trailfinders players scored at least one try, while Inman contributed 12 points from conversions as well as her own try. The complete breakdown confirms the final score of 72–19.

What comes next

The victory gave Barney Maddison’s side a second win from two games in this season’s Next Gen Cup. Trailfinders Women’s next assignment is an away match against Gloucester-Hartpury on 18 October.

For supporters in Ealing, Saturday’s result is a strong sign of the team’s form ahead of the next stage of the competition. The trip away from home will provide a different test after two wins to open the cup campaign.

The first half showed that Harlequins could respond when Trailfinders were reduced to 14 players for ten minutes. After the restart, however, the hosts limited their opponents to one try while returning repeatedly to the scoring area. The difference between the two half-time scorelines reflects Ealing’s growing control of the pace of the match.