The Vale of Lune Festival brought together the best players in the Northern counties for a fantastic celebration of girls' rugby. The combined Durham/Cumbria squad featured strong representation from Mowden with Meg Ryder, Cassie Wilson, Kat Wingate, Lucy Hewitt and Erin Alexander building on their previous performances for County U18. 15 year old Sophie Slater and Amy Hook featured in the squad for the first time, and all players acquitted themselves well.

The Durham/Cumbria team is very much in its infancy, and showed great grit and determination against more experienced opposition. A superb conversion by Mowden's Meg Ryder secured a 7-5 victory in the first match against Cheshire. Excellent defence, effective tackling and a gutsy attitude kept Durham/Cumbria in touch with both Northumberland and Yorkshire. In the final match, however, Lancashire gave another dominating performance which capped their day as outright winners of the festival.

A fantastic day of rugby was had by all - players and spectators - and the next County fixtures at St Helen's on 3rd November are keenly anticipated.