THE panthers entertained Sheffield ladies at Birkenhead Park rugby club on Sunday.

With Sheffield being at the top of the table and unbeaten all season, Panthers knew it was going to be a tough game.

Sheffield took the lead early into the game, when after seven minutes, they quickly broke into the home teams defence to score over the line after several phases of play. 5-0

The match was very evenly fought and when a panthers set piece was the chance for number eight, Clare Grimster to pick up at the back of a scrum down the blindside and offload the ball to Gabi Corby to score the try. 5-5

The first 20 minutes of the second half was full of handling errors, penalties and substitutions for both teams.

With only 20 minutes remaining, Sheffield dominated the scrum and made their way over the line again and converting the kick.

Panthers were edging towards the try line and putting bodies on the line to even the score but unfortunately couldn't find an end product.

Sheffield score a penalty and one more try to find the final score 5-22.

Both teams showed fantastic skill and sportsmanship throughout the 80 mins.

Anyone looking to get involved with women's contact rugby on the Wirral, get in contact with Birkenhead Park Ladies Rugby.