Rushden ladies meet their Inner Warrior

The women were joined for the session by personal trainer Chloe Madeley.

Launched in January, England Rugby’s new nationwide campaign ‘Meet Your Inner Warrior’ saw clubs up and down the country stage special sessions to encourage more women and girls to take up contact rugby within their communities.

Rushden coach Richard North said the session was a success and boasted a great atmosphere and spirit, despite the challenging conditions.

“The weather was atrocious,” he said. “It was wet, cold and muddy. You could not have picked a worse day to promote rugby.

“But that didn’t seem to matter. The girls all got stuck in and really enjoyed it. It was a great event.

“I thought the time of year, not long after Christmas, might be slightly problematic too.

“But sometimes that’s good, people have a ‘New Year, new start’ type of mentality.”

Madeley joined the women as part of the session, and North said she threw herself into the game and immersed herself in the session with the other players.

The session ended in a full-contact game, which North said brought out the competitive side of the women.

“Right towards the end of the session, the girls said they wanted a game,” he said.

“It all got a bit partisan and they duffed each other up for a quarter of an hour at the end!

“Chloe was great value, a great sport and she really got stuck in. Although she turned up in trainers, which was not ideal in the mud!

“She was a really good sport and went about it the right way. She’s a good character, chatted with the girls and seemed really pleased to have been involved.”