The ladies section of Durham Indoor Bowling Club have created history by becoming the fledging club's first-ever league winners.

Having opened only seven years ago, the club are relatively new to the scene but the ladies have not wasted too much time in capturing silverware.

Over the years the club has seen several individuals taste success at regional level, but wining the Ladies County Inter-Club League A division is the club's proudest achievement yet.

Based in Pity Me, the club is yet to receive their trophy - it will be presented at the league's annual meeting in May - but that has failed to dampen championship celebrations.

Club manager, Ray Johnson, is delighted with the success, saying: "It's the best thing that's happened to the club since we opened.

"We've had a couple of ladies reach national final stages but it's the first time we've won anything major.

"We're only in our seventh year and when you first start-up the team has to go into Division B.

"Two years ago they won that division so this is their second season in the top division and they've won that one too, a great achievement."

The ladies, who dropped only eight points out of a possible 55, are D Appleby, E Anderson, A Atkinson, A Bernard, N Brewster (ladies secretary), E Barker, W Barker, A Charlton, M Churnside, A Coulson, K Currie, P Christie, J Davis, H Dixon, I Ferguson, T Gibson, Y Greaves, E Horan, K Jones, J Johnson, A Kennedy, T Kitto, M Lowe, J Mather, M Metcalfe (club president), E Purdhoe, K Rogerson, M Stevens, H Thompson, M Thompson, B Wilson.

This year has also seen individual success with the club's Trudi Kitto being the zone singles winner which meant she represented the County at national level.

The country is split into 16 zones, and Kitto's success gave her a place at the National Finals, held in Basingstoke where she made it to the last eight.

In the pairs, Pauline Christie and Ann Bernard and almost mirrored Kitto but were knocked out at the first round stage in Basingstoke.

*Anyone interested in taking up the sport and joining the club, situated behind the Abbey Leisure Centre, should contact Ray Johnson on (0191) 3840700. Both men and women are welcome.