READING RFC Ladies celebrated their 25th anniversary in style on Saturday with a black tie dinner at Holme Park, with current and old players, coaches and hardened supporters from across the country attending.

The evening included speeches from original players, coaches and guest speaker Sara Cox, a referee making huge strides in the sport.

Reading Ladies began in 1990 with a squad of 12-15 players. They trained, learnt the laws, and the forwards practised line-out throws and scrummaging and the backs practised moves.

In season two they played six friendlies, losing all of them heavily.

However, they were not deterred and in season three they entered into the official league system in what was then South West Four. They were officially up-and-running – they had a squad and they even had reserves.

During the last 20 years Reading Ladies has grown from strength to strength. They now have established girls teams at Under 13s, U15s and U18s that have also been running for more than 10 seasons, and the club has also been instrumental in the development of the first girls’ league in the area, the Thames Valley League.

Reading players have played at county, regional and international level – with 14 representing their country

Reflecting on the anniversary dinner, youth chairman Craig Hunter said: “It was a fantastic evening and so many people made this happen.

"I would like to thank every single player, coach, administrator and supporter for their personal contribution to this great group of ladies.

"Without doubt Reading Ladies’ contribution to the club is immense – both on and off the field they have embraced the rugby ethos and are a vital cog in the club wheel.”

If you are interested in playing for Reading Ladies, contact Charlotte Hunt for further information on c_hunt@hotmail.co.uk.

l READING Abbey Nuns scored sevent tries as they beat Richmond, from Limerick, 39-20 in a rematch following the club's tour to Ireland last year.

Jess Potter and Emma Ross- Lee were the stand-out Abbey forwards while Alice Denton in the centre provided the cutting edge.

The hosts quickly ran up a 32-0 lead, but in the second half Richmond struck back into contention.

However, their resurgence slammed to a halt when Annette Thomas raced from her own 22 to touch down the last killer score.