Students from Bathurst and Kelso high schools joined like- minded players from Young, Forbes, Mudgee and Blayney for the day-long event.

The non-competitive gala day was designed to let high school-age students have a taste of rugby league without the pressure of winning or losing.

Gala day convener Mick Armstrong said he was delighted that so many players took the opportunity to have a run around the experience rugby league.

“The entire day was non-competitive, to give all of the girls a real taste rugby league without any pressure to win,” he said.

“Currently girls in the region are not allowed to play with the boys past the age of 12 but there are a lot of talented players in the area.”

Armstrong said that because it was a non-competitive day the crowd was very supportive of all the players and very positive.

That, combined with the fact there were no injuries or fights, had meant it was as close to a perfect day as you could get.

“It was a great day, the weather was perfect which allowed for some fantastic football to be played,” he said.

“The girls did a great job, in defence – there were several big hits while in attack they showed great attacking flair. “There was no pressure to win and everyone seemed to have a lot of fun.”

Armstrong said Kelso and Bathurst players did well, particularly as they did not have any training before the day.

He said that if the popularity of the sport with women continued to rise, he could easily see both school’s having teams in a formal competition. “This will become an annual gala day and if we see the number of players in the region increasing – who knows maybe one day in the future their could be a competition,” he said.

“Certainly the ARL player development is pushing for more women and girls to be involved in the sport and having a competition is certainly an ideal.

“I hope to see that happen, because there are a lot of young girls who are fans of the game but don’t get the opportunity to play. It would be great to see them out there on the field.”