Catherine Spencer, from Folkestone, led England’s women to their first European Championship title since 1997 in Amsterdam on Saturday.

The RBS Six Nations Grand Slam champions defeated Wales 12-6 after trailing 6-0 at the interval.

Four penalties from Darlington’s Katy McLean were enough to secure the title for the English side in the second half.

“A lot of very good English sides have failed in this tournament but finally we have won it,” said head coach Gary Street.

"This was a tough game, but in the end we dominated the second-half and were in control.

"Wales gave us a very good test though, our first real test since the Rugby World Cup Final in 2006."