Hammersmith and Fulham beat Reading Abbey Nuns to lift the inaugural Griffin Cup at Finchley Rugby Club on Saturday.

The cup was been named after Deborah Griffin OBE, who founded the first women’s rugby team out of Finchley RFC.

Griffin commented: “It is great to be back at Finchley where women’s club rugby in England started 30 years ago. Cups like this give teams something to play for each year and hopefully help to sustain the number of players in the game.”

The day was a huge success, with 120 players from eight teams taking part in a knock-out competition before progressing to either the Cup or Plate final.

In the Plate final, Worthing thumped Haringey 52-0.

Saracens and England womens’ Hannah Gallagher was in attendance and said: “Five years ago we introduced the St George’s Day Festival for girl’s rugby and now we, with Middlesex, have identified a need to develop the women’s game further for teams that are growing in terms of recruitment and playing level.

“It’s great to see Middlesex introducing a new competition for the women’s game, especially in World Cup Year.”