NEWQUAY were conquered to win the South West (south) contest; Drybrook were dispatched to win the South West girls U15's championship; and now the London champions (Welwyn) and the South East Champions (West Kent Divas) were both beaten by Crediton, who now go to the national final on April 19 against Castleford RFC.

The six regions of the RFU meant that Crediton were involved in a three-way tournament to reach the national final.

The hard ground conditions and the heat made for a demanding occasion at Newbury RFC on March 22.

The first match was against Welwyn, a club with an established girls programme. After a tentative start, Welwyn went into the lead with a break through the middle from their excellent centre, who also converted the try.

This was quickly levelled by a try from Crediton fly-half Millie Attwell, who also converted. Danni Phillips soon added to the Crediton score, making it 12-7 at half-time.

The second half was all Crediton, with tries from captain Rachel Mortimer and Sarah Nathan, and a penalty from Millie Attwell...29-7 the result.

The second match, against an aggressive West Kent Divas, was a hard fought affair. The tournament format meant that Crediton played two games back-to-back, and the Divas had rested while Crediton played their first match.

An early try by Fi Wotton put Crediton ahead in the first half, supported by fantastic defence from the Crediton pack, in which Jess Mingo, Lydia Sandys and Sarah Kingdon made significant contributions.

Despite some huge defensive effort, WKD went over for a converted score, putting the pressure on Crediton.

The team are blessed with phenomenal grit, and with the clock running down, Sarah Kingdon made a 50 metre run up-field, with supporting runners, which led to Nikkie Sherratt scoring in the corner. The conversion was inconsequential, with the last gasp score pushing the Crediton girls into the national show down.

The RFU representative commented on the impressive way the girls dominated both matches using their kicking game to apply pressure and eventually to close the games out, the like of which she hadn't seen before at this age group.

Backs coach Ian Gillard commented: "The girls never accept defeat. The final moments of the second game did not need to deliver a Crediton win because other results had gone in our favour, but the girls were absolutely determined to progress to the final with an unblemished record."

Forward coach Toby Newstead commented: "Despite the exhausting format of the event, the Crediton girls sent a message to the girls rugby community of the South of England that they are a force to be reckoned with."

PA