DEDICATED sportswomen from the district definitely prove ‘This Girl Can’.

Women and girls in the Tyne Valley have played their part as a record number of females are now playing sport on a regular basis nationally, as detailed in a recent survey.

Using the latest figures from its Active People Survey, Sport England revealed that more than 7.2m adult women are now involved in sport and take part in regular physical activity, which is not far off half the total of the reported 16m people over the age of 16 engaging in sport on a weekly basis.

That number has increased by 250,000 since Sport England launched its This Girl Can campaign, which appeared on national television and was plastered across social media platforms to encourage girls to get involved.

Tynedale women have long been an active group and have blazed the trail in some sports, and this has increased in recent times.

Not every sport nationally is reporting an upturn in numbers, with participation in athletics and cycling surprisingly decreasing over the past 12 months.

However, the five per cent drop in athletics is certainly not mirrored in this district, with more women running than ever before.

The women have been flying the flag for Tynedale Harriers during the cross country season, regularly getting better turn-outs than their male counterparts.

At the recent Sherman Cup (men) and Davison Shield (women) meeting at South Shields, the number of female runners in the black vest of Tynedale was double that of the men and boys.

Tynedale’s only male complete team of three came in the U13 boys, with nine members on display, yet the women had 18 runners and were just one U13 girl off having full teams across all ages. The trend continued at the following fixture at Peterlee, where they outnumbered the men by 13 athletes to seven.

Another sport within the Tyne Valley which is experiencing a big growth in female participation is cricket.

Typically a male- dominated sport, local lasses are turning out in force and the scene across Northumberland is in a very healthy position.

In the senior county women’s league, Corbridge and Stocksfield both have two teams and Hexham Leazes has one.

Taking home the title for the first time this year were Corbridge Angels’ first team, a mix of adults and juniors who only started playing recreationally seven years ago, proving how far the sport has come in a short space of time.

There are plenty of girls involved in the sport locally too, with Corbridge and Stocksfield particularly good at encouraging youngsters to get involved.

While the district has had two women’s teams for a long while now, girls’ football is enjoying a purple patch and teenage girls are playing the sport in large numbers.

Hexham, Ponteland United, Haltwhistle United and Wylam Rockettes all have teams competing in the Northumberland Girls League, with most having more than one team.

Wylam are particularly showing the way, with teams across all age groups up to the age of 16, making it the largest club for girls’ football in the district.

As ever, an Olympic year helps boost all sports and the phenomenal efforts of Team GB in Rio has spurred on many people to try something new.

An estimated 10m British people watched as the women’s hockey team won gold in dramatic fashion, with the 10 o’clock news even waiting while the penalty shoot-out with Holland was conducted.

Tynedale Hockey’s women’s section is reaping the rewards too as they go from strength-to-strength.

Their Northumberland League B side is again challenging towards the top of the table, while more newcomers are breaking through from their weekly Back to Hockey sessions.

With up to 16 women turning up for the sessions, it is a great opportunity to prepare women for competitive sport while also providing a great platform for those who just want to play it at a recreational level.