Ruby Enright scored four tries as Leeds Rhinos launched the women's Super League Super Four stage with a 38-16 win over York Valkyrie at AMT Headingley Stadium.

The Super Four stage is the business end of the women's Super League season, where the top four teams from the regular campaign — Wigan Warriors, Leeds Rhinos, St Helens and York Valkyrie — play off for a place in the Grand Final. The bottom four sides, meanwhile, fight to avoid a relegation play-off against the National Championship winners (Super League). Leeds and York opened the Super Fours as part of a double header at Headingley, with the Rhinos' men's side also in action on the same day (Leeds Rhinos).

Evie Cousins got Leeds moving with the opening try, but York's Megan Pakulis hit back to level the scores. The teams traded blows through the first half, and when Emma Kershaw crossed early in the second period to make it 10-10, the contest was firmly in the balance (BBC Sport).

Then Ebony Stead took over. On 48 minutes she sprinted 80 metres from a standing start, a solo effort that put Leeds back in control and shifted the momentum decisively. A try in rugby league is worth four points; the conversion — a kick at goal directly in line from where the try was scored — adds two more if successful. Stead's long-range strike was the spark Leeds needed.

Enright, who had dotted down once in the first half, then ran in three more tries after the break to put the result beyond doubt. Pakulis grabbed her second as a late consolation for York, but the Rhinos had long since pulled clear. Lois Forsell's side finished 38-16 winners, a scoreline that reflected their second-half dominance.

The result followed Wigan Warriors' victory over St Helens on Thursday in the other Super Four match, meaning both opening fixtures went to form with the higher-ranked sides prevailing (BBC Sport).

For Leeds, the win sets down an early marker. Enright's four-try haul — one in the first half, three in the second — singled her out as the standout performer on a day when the Rhinos' attacking fluency eventually overwhelmed a York side that stayed competitive for long spells.

In the day's other women's Super League fixture, Featherstone Rovers beat Leigh Leopards 16-4 at Twist Lane. Brogan Churm's try, converted by Dani Waters, gave Featherstone a 6-0 half-time lead, and further scores from Katie Evans and Tilly Churm — both converted by Waters — stretched the advantage to 16-0 before Leigh managed a late response (BBC Sport).

The Super Four stage continues with every match carrying weight toward Grand Final qualification. Leeds and Wigan have the early edge.