Report: Falkirk RFC 5-45 Gala RFC

Pictured: Action from the Women's National Bowl Final 2026

Gala RFC came out on top in an entertaining contest between the two sides, meeting on the back pitches at Scottish Gas Murrayfield in the finale of the women’s club season.

Both teams were strong defensively on their respective routes to the final, and that was evident in the early stages with very few chances between the assured sides.

Some early scrummaging inside Falkirk territory followed by strong running from Gala’s Nadia Cumming enabled Morgan Stewart to get going. Stewart thought she had opened the scoring, however the referee denied her following an earlier knock-on.

A promising lineout inside near the Falkirk line, which Gala collected well and moved through the hands, ended up with Dayna Anderson who gathered one-handed and touched down under the posts. Nicola Halfpenny added the extra two points (0-7, 31 mins).

Falkirk’s defence had to work hard to prevent Dayna Anderson, who was again the brightest outlet for Gala, from crossing the line as she was stopped by fullback Aimee Hunter.

The Netherdale side continued to mount pressure and their two centres linked up well when Morgan Stewart found Kara Cairns to land the second blow on the opposition. Another well executed kick from Halfpenny extended their lead (0-14, 37 mins).

An injury to Falkirk’s captain Morven Hylands, which forced her to leave the field, resulted in an extended delay before Gala went into the break on top.

Half-time: Falkirk RFC 0-14 Gala RFC

The Borders side started where they left off as Anderson again carried well before offloading the ball to Morgan Stewart. She scored in the corner under the Scottish Gas Murrayfield West Stand to please the vocal travelling support (0-19, 44 mins).

Monika Bičev and Catherine Pollock proved to be dangerous attacking threats and looked to be Falkirk’s best chance of getting on the scoresheet, but a series of handling errors throughout the team thwarted their momentum.

A quick tap penalty by Gala’s Halfpenny found its way to Gemma Stoddart, who broke through tackles to put the ball down over the line. The creator, Halfpenny, herself converted successfully to open up a comfortable lead (0-26, 50 mins).

Better handling from the forwards granted Gala another try minutes later as replacement Emma Hackney crashed through to score at the base of the posts. Halfpenny slotted the kick with ease on the hour mark (0-33, 59 mins).

Falkirk’s best moment of the game came as the impressive half-time replacement Catherine Pollock scored an excellent darting try to get them on the scoreboard (5-33, 72 mins).

As the clock ticked down, Gala continued to bring on firepower from the bench, the pick of which was replacement Leigh-Anne Stewart. She scored on the left hand side before drifting through the Falkirk defence minutes later to score her second. First-half scorer Kara Cairns took on kicking duty to convert the second try and close out the scoring (5-45, 78 mins).

Full-time: Falkirk RFC 5-45 Gala RFC

Falkirk RFC: 15. Aimee Hunter 14. Monika Bičev 13. Ella Barclay 12. Jessica Smart 11. Shannon Paterson 10. Sophie Robertson 9. Abi Skelton 1. Daisy Campbell 2. Lynn Penman 3. Danielle Nixon 4. Danika Scott 5. Molly McNairn 6. Sara Bowden 7. Karen Hunter 8. Morven Hylands (c)

Replacements: 16. Lauren Baigrie 17. Faith Kemp 18. Lauren Hamilton 19. Amy MacKinnon 20. Yvonne Tunnicliff 24. Catherine Pollock 22. Katie Galloway

Gala RFC: 15. Nadia Cumming 14. Jessica Swinton 13. Kara Cairns 12. Morgan Stewart 11. Dayna Anderson 10. Nicola Halfpenny 9. Steffanie Potter (c) 1. Libby-Anne Finlay 2. Joss Couchman 3. Freya Mcleman 4. Catherine Polson 5. Gemma Stoddart 6. Robyn Allison 7. Stroma Beukes 8. Dawn Salvesen

Replacements: 16. Emma Hackney 17. Claira Davidson 18. Samantha Kerr 19. Leigh-Anne Stewart 20. Iona Pollock 21. Shona Scott 22. Morgan Smith

Falkirk RFC:
Scorers: Tries: Pollock

Gala RFC:
Scorers: Tries: Anderson, Cairns, Stewart, Stoddart, Hackney, Stewart (2)
Conversions: Halfpenny (4), Cairns

Referee: Ellen Cowie

Player of the Match: Nicola Halfpenny (Gala RFC)