DARLINGTON'S young female rugby stars are celebrating after two successes on the same weekend.
Darlington Mowden Park (DMP) linked up with members of Gateshead to enter the Durham County Girls Festival held at Barnard Castle last weekend.
The group the Darlington girls faced contained some very strong teams including Houghton-le-Spring and Stockton.
After some difficult games which showcased the development of all teams involved DMP went into the final against Blaydon unbeaten.
Read more: Why there was slow traffic on a Darlington road for hours this afternoon
The final proved very tough against Blaydon U13s but the Darlington girls showed how strong a team they could be and were victorious.
The girls won the 2022 County Durham Girls festival without losing a game.
Chris Holmes, under 13s coach, said: “Each game they play the girls are very hard-working. They put a lot of effort in and their hard work paid off.
“They all approach each game with good attitudes and work really well together as a team. They should all be proud of themselves.
“Gateshead also played amazingly well too.”
Read more: Meet the 1,000th cat to be re-homed from the RSPCA Cat Hub in Darlington
Similarly, the under 15 girls emerged victorious in a very competitive tournament against all clubs organised by Durham County RFU last weekend.
Pooled with Hartlepool, Stockton and Blaydon, the teams shared players when needed.
Winning both of their group games saw the girls progress to the final against a strong Houghton-le-Spring, and after conceding an early try, the girls fought back with a try of their own to level the scores.
Darlington Mowden Park edged ahead just before half-time with a converted try but Houghton-le-Spring struck back in the second half with a try but no conversion to leave Darlington with a two point lead.
The 2 sides fought with grit and determination with DMP clinching victory scoring 2 more tries.
Read more: The hospitals in the North East NOT bringing back parking charges for staff
Rachel Longstaff, team manager, said: “We’re over the moon for them. They really deserve it. They’ve worked really hard, especially over this season. We’ve had new girls join recently and it’s just nice for the girls to have some recognition.
“They play to win but they also play for fun and to enjoy themselves. Covid was a set-back for us but recently we’ve had new girls join who aren’t just new to us but new to rugby in general which is great.
“With the Women’s Six Nations at the moment with England being the top team, more and more girls are thinking if boys can play then girls can play as well.
“It’s about learning how to work as a team. We have girls who come from all over County Durham, Teesside and North Yorkshire who may not cross paths otherwise and they become good friends.”
Darlington Mowden Park holds matches on a Sunday and is always encouraging new members to join for U13s, U15s and U18s at any experience level. Training takes place at Darlington Arena on a Thursday evening from 6-7:15pm.
For more information, call Rachel Longstaff on 07779570418.
--
Keep up to date with all the latest news on our website, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
You can also follow our dedicated Darlington Facebook page for all the latest in the area by clicking here.
For all the top news updates from right across the region straight to your inbox, sign up to our newsletter here.
Have you got a story for us? Contact our newsdesk on newsdesk@nne.co.uk or contact 01325 505054
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here