WE all know the famous quote by Sir Winston Churchill "Rugby is a hooligans game played by gentlemen!" but here in Devon women's and girl's rugby is fast becoming one of the more popular sports played in the county and we have our very own girls teams right here in Crediton.

The under 15's and under 13's girl teams play for Crediton RFC and soon to be added will be the under 18's.

The under 13's are aged between 11 and 13 and currently have 13 players but are always on the look out for more to join the team. They play full contact rugby so do expect a few bruises here and there.

So far this season they have won five games and grow in confidence each time they play. They travel with their very supportive parents to matches and tournaments in and around the county.

Recently, they travelled to Plymstock where they met Sara Cox who is a professional women's rugby referee.

Sara refereed some of the 2014 women's rugby world cup games which England won.

The week before the Plymstock visit the girls played at a tournament in Sidmouth where the 2014 women's rugby world cup trophy was on display - this seemed to inspire them as they then went on to win two games back-to-back.

The girls play hard and you cannot fault their determination to win and some of them would like to work their way up to county level when they are a bit older and, hopefully, turn professional and play for England.

They try and play every Sunday, weather permitting, at home or away and when not playing they are training on a Sunday at 12.30pm at Crediton Rugby Club. The next tournament sees them playing at Minehead in the Somerset Run Festival.

If you think your daughter or someone you know may be interested in playing and is aged between 11 and 13 years old, then please contact their coach, Simon Kitchen, for more details by emailing: [email protected]">[email protected] .

Crediton under 13 girls are hoping to host their first ever rugby festival this spring so why not pop along and show your support, you could be watching future rugby stars?!

Rebecca Jones