Haverfordwest Ladies RFC reflected on a successful season at their annual presentation evening on Tuesday, July 12.

The club welcomed Caroline Spanton, the WRU’s national women’s rugby manager, as their special guest as well as sponsors and supporters.

Caroline commented on how well Haverfordwest have done to gain promotion to division one last season.

“I think you've done really well to win the league and we know you'll be competitive in division one,” she said.

“I'm really excited about Haverfordwest being in division one because it'll up the ante and will do the club the world of good in terms of giving the women some competitive fixtures.”

Caroline was also encouraged to see the number of under 15s coming through, which she said will “move the whole club forward.”
She commented that women’s rugby as a whole has seen a huge boost in participation across all age levels.

“We're doing all we can to make sure we foster that participation,” she said while looking ahead to the world cup, autumn internationals and the six nations.

Caroline added that there is some exciting news in the pipeline which will “put west Wales on the rugby map,” with all to be revealed in the next couple of weeks.

Haverfordwest Ladies coach Gareth Charles was also full of praise for the team.

“It’s our third season in the league and we’re exactly where we want to be - with promotion in the first season, winning the cup in the second, and promotion in the third,” he said.

“The girls played exceptional rugby, and it’s a treat for Ben John and I to coach them because they always want to improve.”

The presentation of awards followed. The winners were:

Ladies player of the year - Nina Colville

Players' player - Awen Prysor
Coaches’ player - Delyth Foster
Most improved player - Rachel Harding
Under 15s player of the year - Sarah Lawrence

Coaches’ player of the year -  Frances Kerr

The evening also saw Katie Thicker presented with her Welsh Colleges cap.

The ladies captain for the new season was announced as Sophie Rees, with Natalie Bowen taking over the role as team manager.

Pre-season training starts on Wednesday, July 27 at Haverfordwest RFC. New players are very welcome.