With strong winds and heavy rain forecast, the match was moved to the all-weather pitch, although the rain held off for the opening exchanges.

Valley, strengthened by the return of Kyle and Michael Bothwell in the backs, started with the wind behind them but struggled to settle, conceding a succession of penalties that allowed Skerries to establish territory.

Their afternoon was further disrupted when second row Wilson suffered a knee injury, with Magner coming on as a replacement.

Skerries made the most of their early pressure, driving over from a line-out on eight minutes to open the scoring with an unconverted try.

Valley responded when a penalty inside the home side’s 22 presented Smyton with an opportunity to take a quick tap. Catching the Skerries defence unawares, he crossed untouched to level the scores at 5-5.

The game became increasingly stop-start as both sides struggled to build sustained phases of play, with Valley responsible for much of the early penalty count.

On 20 minutes, Skerries earned a line-out deep inside the Valley 22 from a penalty. A powerful drive created the opening for their number 12 to cross for a converted try and establish a 12-5 lead.

Valley gradually began to gain control of the scrum and finished the half strongly. Good recycling of possession from a scrum on 39 minutes allowed Maxwell to cross for an unconverted try, reducing the deficit to 12-10 at the break.

Valley were forced into another change at half-time, with Ewan Haire replacing the injured Michael Bothwell at scrum-half.

The visitors improved considerably after the restart, with their forwards taking control and Haire, who would go on to earn man-of-the-match honours, causing problems for the Skerries defence with his sharp breaks around the fringes.

The penalty count continued to mount, but this time it was Skerries who were increasingly penalised as Valley pressed for the lead.

Maxwell found touch effectively to give Valley a series of line-out opportunities, although the strong wind and driving rain made securing possession difficult.

On 53 minutes, a Valley scrum provided the platform for Smyton to pick up at number eight and drive over for a try, with Maxwell adding the conversion to put the visitors ahead for the first time at 17-12.

Skerries were then reduced to 14 men following a yellow card for a high tackle, and Valley took further control as their pack continued to dominate.

The pressure eventually told on 73 minutes when flanker Stinson crossed for a bonus-point try. Maxwell again converted to give Valley what appeared to be a comfortable 24-12 advantage.

However, Skerries refused to give up and capitalised on a series of penalties to work their way into the Valley 22. A line-out drive was initially stopped, but the hosts moved the ball down the blindside and their winger squeezed over in the corner.

A superb conversion from out wide, particularly in the conditions, brought the deficit back to five points at 24-19 with five minutes remaining.

Skerries had another opportunity to threaten in the closing stages after kicking a penalty to touch, but Valley disrupted the line-out and recovered possession.

The visitors then conceded a penalty of their own while attempting to work their way out of their 22, giving Skerries one final line-out opportunity. Once again, Valley spoiled the set-piece, and the final whistle confirmed a valuable away victory.

It was not a match for the purists, with the difficult conditions and a high penalty count preventing either side from producing much flowing rugby. Nevertheless, Valley will be pleased with a determined performance that leaves them top of the division on points difference after several of the teams above them suffered their first defeats of the campaign.

Attention now turns to next Saturday’s trip to Malone, Valley’s closest challengers, who are also unbeaten in the league.

Malone have won three of the sides’ four meetings over the past two seasons, with one of those defeats costing Valley a home play-off tie in their bid for promotion to Division 2A at the end of last season.

With the revised league structure meaning only the top two teams will qualify for the play-offs, next weekend’s encounter represents an important early test. The winners will move top and open up a gap on their chasing rivals.

Elsewhere, Valley’s seconds were beaten 12-5 by Championship side Ballymoney in the Towns Cup, while the thirds recorded a 29-21 league victory over Queen’s thirds.

In youth rugby, the under-18s and under-14s enjoyed convincing wins over Donegal Town, winning 38-0 and 59-5 respectively. The under-16s narrowly missed out, losing 20-15 to the same opposition.