Beneath the glow of the Friday Night Lights, Leicester Tigers were brought back down to Earth by a sublime Trailfinders Women performance, in a match brimming with physicality and attacking flair.

The visitors kick us off and Leah Bartlett collects well, providing a strong platform to clear the lines. Abby Dow runs it back but the World  Rugby player of the year nominee is tackled well by Francesca McGhie. After a back and forth exchange, Tigers win the first penalty of the game and kick to touch.

Tigers launch the first set piece of the match, Tahlia Brody carrying hard. The visitors turn over the ball and look to launch their own play, eventually winning a penalty and kicking to touch. But it’s Tigers turn to turnover, Roisin McBrien rising highest to steal the line out and launch a counter maul to make strong metres upfield.

The game’s first big break comes from Catha Jacobs, the Springbok battering through the defensive line and allowing the likes of Amelia Tutt and Meg Jones to make incremental gains on a scrambling defence.

However, an offload gone array allows Trailfinders the opportunity to secure the game’s first score. Powerful midfield running gets the side all the way to Tigers’ whitewash, prop Liz Crake eventually burrowing over from short range after strong defence is eventually breached.

And just like that there’s a second score. From the scrum, the visitors whip the ball quickly out to fly half Ellie Green who has a plethora of strike runners to pick from. She chooses perfectly, Vicky Laflin hitting fresh air and sprinting through the Tigers defence, holding her composure to execute a two on one to perfection and hit Julia Schell making the support run on her shoulder.

Trailfinders have touched down for two tries in quick succession and a few minutes later they have a third.

Tigers had looked to respond swiftly and get right up to the Londoners five metre line with a rumbling maul, but the ball is ripped away right at the last second.

From here, the visitors build back up to the line and eventually whip the ball wide, Dow having both the speed and elite finishing ability to pull off an immense jumping finish in the far-right corner.

Tigers are all at sea here, completely shut out of any possession for almost 15 minutes and in desperate need of a score.

Elis Martin is the saviour here, the hooker stretching well to touch down from close range. The Scot scores her fourth try for Tigers, following a strong break from Meg Jones and then McGhie out wide, before the forwards do the rest and drive over.

However, once again the visitors strike back and stamp their authority on the match, with Liz Crake grabbing a second score of the game. A slick line out move sees the ball avoid the maul and move inside from the line out, Rowenna Burnfield sprinting through a gap. The Red Rose is stopped inches short but prop Crake picks and go’s and bundles over, with Tigers still flying back to cover.  

With the clock ticking down, the visitors defence holds firm and the score holds steady as the whistle blows for half time.

Half time score: Leicester Tigers 7 v 26 Trailfinders Women

The second half sees Julia Omokhuale and Eloise Hayward, on for her Tigers debut, enter the fray and the replacements make an immediate impact and lead to the second period’s opening score.

Omokhuale has added exceptional physicality, making three big breaks inside the opening two minutes, while Hayward is firing the ball around, allowing the forwards to make constant gainline metres, eventually culminating in Brody hitting a hard line through the centre and touching down beneath the posts.

From the kick off, the hosts cannot keep the ball though and the visitors tactically stretch their lead, having forced a penalty right in front of the posts.

This is a true basketball game and duly the game goes back to end to end action, the likes of Dow and McGhie forcing breaks across the park but stellar defence and a couple of missed opportunities at the line keep the scores level for the next 15 minutes.

In that time, Amy Cokayne has entered the field to a huge ovation from the Tigers family but, devastatingly, Keia Mae Sagapolu Sanele comes off early following a knee injury, Eva Donaldson her replacement while captain Natasha Jones also exits the field and is replaced by Sarah Nicholas.  

However, it’s the visitors who keep control of the game and keep Leicester camped firmly in their own half. Trailfinders aim a volley of shots at the Tigers line but the side defend admirably, interceptions, scramble defence and the visitors losing that clinical edge in attack.

In a later post-match chat, Tom Hudson would detail how his side looked ‘tired’. It means that as time ticked away, the side struggled to create meaningful chances, half breaks quickly breaking down and long kicks returned with aplomb by the visitors, who were superb throughout.

Full credit must go to the Tigers family, who were in fine voice throughout a tough night at the office for Leicester. The team come away disappointed that they couldn’t do more to spark them up, on a dark night under the Friday Night lights.

Full time score: Leicester Tigers 14 v 29 Trailfinders Women