ST Helens moved to the top of the Betfred Women’s Super League table with a hard-fought 10-6 victory against York Valkyrie in their rescheduled match at the Totally Wicked Stadium.

All 16 points were scored during the opening 32 minutes, with neither side able to add to the scoreboard during the second half as the Valkyrie’s hopes of a third consecutive League Leaders’ Shield ebbed further away.

York did grow into the match, but all the damage had been done with just a quarter of an hour on the clock.

Faye Gaskin opened the scoring with an early penalty, with Leah Burke then marking her first appearance in seven weeks with a four-minute brace, having recovered from the hand injury she sustained with England in June.

But though Remi Wilton responded for the Valkyrie with a dummy-half dart eight minutes before the break, it was not enough for them to record a much-needed victory as several golden opportunities were squandered against their title rivals.

Saints are now sitting pretty on 16 points, two above both Wigan Warriors and Leeds Rhinos, with York four points further behind in fourth.

Lindsay Anfield, still without 13 members of her squad due to injury and availability, welcomed back both Wilton and Carrie Roberts, but York were without forward Liv Wood after efforts to overturn her one-match suspension proved futile.

Winger-turned prop Kelsey Gentles, having made her comeback from a knee injury in the Women’s Nines Finals on Sunday, made her impact felt off the bench, where she was joined by Sheffield Eagles youngsters Lisa Parker and Agnes Wood, and young half-back Mahault Pommier.

Roberts had been the hero for the Valkyrie as they edged another tight encounter 20-16 on the opening day of the league season back in April, but it was the hosts who had the upper hand this time around.

Saints asserted themselves from the kick-off, with Lacey Owen letting the ball bounce over her head and handing them a set on the 20-metre line.

But they could not capitalise, with Vicky Whitfield knocking-on as she looked to score after having weaved through some patchy Valkyrie defence.

The hosts though were in front with less than five minutes on the clock, Gaskin converting from the tee after Georgie Hetherington had been penalised for a high shot on the 10-metre line.

Tara Jane Stanley then prevented what had seemed a certain score after Burke’s marauding charge down the left edge, bringing the winger to ground just metres from the whitewash.

It took until the 10th minute for York to have their first good-ball set, but Roberts was brought down on the 20-metre line after Wilton had chosen to show-and-go on the last.

However, almost immediately, they were further behind, with a six-again proving costly.

Beri Salihi danced around the Valkyrie defence before the ball was worked to Emily Rudge, who found Burke to her left to touch down into the corner.

Gaskin was wide from the tee and could not convert again four minutes later after a fine move on the powerplay.

Rudge again combined with Burke on the left edge, the latter bypassing Stanley’s desperate last-ditch tackle attempt to score her second in four minutes into the corner.

York, under the cosh, twice played themselves into trouble - handing Saints possession after a miscommunication between Lucy Eastwood and Georgia Taylor before needlessly conceding a penalty on the last tackle - but were able to force a pressure-relieving knock-on.

The Valkyrie then enjoyed their best set, pinning St Helens back inside their 40-metre line before Stanley won them their first penalty, having been caught high on the kick return.

Wilton’s kick on the last was gathered by Rachael Woosey, who was brought down inside her 10-metre line by a good chase.

The visitors though did bring themselves back into proceedings eight minutes before the break, having been gifted a six-again on the 20-metre line.

Emma Kershaw and Stanley both came close before Wilton backed herself out of dummy half from the play-the-ball, reaching across to score on the right edge.

Stanley, despite having taken a knock during the build-up, nailed her only conversion attempt.

York missed a golden opportunity to pull themselves back level after Taylor found herself in space on the left edge, but she was brought down on the 10-metre line, despite Partington having been left in space on her outside.

Instead, it was Saints who threatened to have the last word on the stroke of half time, but the visitors’ defence held firm, the 10-6 scoreline keeping them squarely in proceedings.

Katie Mottershead won the hosts a penalty for a high shot early into the second half as they looked to make another fast start, but though Zoe Harris was able to outjump Partington to Gaskin’s kick, they could not make inroads into the visitors’ defence.

Stanley’s swirling kick then caused havoc between Salihi and Woosey, with Eastwood able to regain possession just outside the 10-metre line, but Partington could not reel in Taylor’s pass as she looked set to score into the left corner against her former side.

The teams then traded mistakes, with Wilton intercepting Rudge’s loose pass, but Parker could not keep hold of the ball as she looked to race past halfway.

Back-to-back errors threatened to open up York’s defence for a third time but they recovered well, as after Harris and Whitfield had been brought down less than 10 metres from the whitewash, Burke could not quite get fingertips to Gaskin’s grubber.

The Valkyrie though could not capitalise on the resultant 20-metre restart, for although Jess Sharp had brought them within 15 metres of the line, an off-balance Stanley saw her kick returned by Lucy McColm with little trouble.

Roberts’ mammoth hit on Burke set the tone for the final minutes, with the wind firmly in York’s sails.

Salihi knocked-on from Stanley’s kick on the last before the Valkyrie were awarded a six-again on the 10-metre line, but they could not make that count, nor back-to-back Saints errors with four minutes left to play.

Partington then saw the ball slip from her grasp as she charged on the kick return in what proved to be the last action of the hard-fought encounter.

York return to action at Warrington Wolves on Sunday (12pm).

ST HELENS: Salihi, Woosey, E. Stott, McColm, Burke, Harris, Gaskin, Whitfield, Jones, Crowl, Travis, Rudge, Cunningham.

INTERCHANGES: Williams, D. Stott, Birchall, Mottershead

TRIES: Burke (11, 15)

GOALS: Gaskin 1/3

YORK VALKYRIE: Stanley, Partington, Owen, Roberts, Kershaw, Wilton, Eastwood, Sharp, Hetherington, Bell, Taylor, Andrade, Pakulis.

INTERCHANGES: Parker, Gentles, Pommier, Wood

TRIES: Wilton (32)

GOALS: Stanley 1/1

POINTS SEQUENCE: 2-0, 6-0, 10-0, 10-4, 10-6

HALF TIME: 10-6

YORK’S STAR WOMAN: Savannah Andrade. A stellar performance from the second-rower, who was tireless in both attack and defence.