The ladies’ touch rugby section at Bredon Star will be celebrating their 10^th anniversary next year and it’s fair to say they have come a long way in a relatively short time.

They are close to winning the South West Division of the Midlands Ladies Touch League for the  third season in a row and there is certainly a feelgood factor around the club.

“We’ve got about 20 to 25 players signed up,” said Matt Jaynes, who has been head coach for the past five years.

“The youngest player we have is 12 and we’ve got a couple of players who are about 50.”

Jaynes, who lives in Cheltenham, was a hooker for Bredon for some 15 years. The now 43-year-old also played for Cheltenham when he was growing up, but these days he’s a massive fan of touch rugby.

“It’s a faster sport,” he said. “There’s less physicality but there’s a lot more skill.

“And it’s very inclusive – because it’s a lot less physical a 12-year-old can play alongside the adults.”

The Midlands Ladies Touch League runs from March until October, with the final round of this season’s campaign taking place at Malvern on Sunday 1^st October.

Pershore, Ledbury, Ross-on-Wye and Malvern all compete in the South West Division and Jaynes said: “For a touch team you need six players.

“We have a tournament every month which is hosted by each of the teams in the division.

“Games are two 10-minute halves and we play three or four games in a tournament. The games are always played on a Sunday.”

And it’s been a case of Sunday’s best for quite a few of the ladies at Bredon for a good while now, with a number of them playing at national and international level.

“Quite a few play for Cheltenham in the national league,” continued Jaynes, a financial adviser. “And three of our girls have won gold medals representing England.”

Helen Ayres helped England Over-40s win the European Championships in France in August, while Maddie Miles-Kingston was part of the England Under-18 side which won the Youth Atlantic Cup in Nottingham.

“The Youth Atlantic Cup is like the northern hemisphere World Cup,” explained Jayner. “Cerys Godwin, who was playing for the England Under-20s mixed team, also won the Youth Atlantic Cup.”

That particular victory was especially satisfying for Jaynes because he was the team’s coach. He also plays touch rugby for Cheltenham Tigers.

Bredon ladies’ touch rugby section train 7-8pm on Tuesdays at the Newlands. Anyone is welcome.