Among the fabulous A-list celebrities who showed up were Lou & Andy, Popeye & Olive, Torvill & Dean, Patsy & Eddie, Kim & Aggie, the Lone Ranger & Tonto, Peter Pan and Tinkerbell, and Gavin Henson & Charlotte Church.

The main purpose of the evening was to acknowledge those who have contributed on and off the pitch to what has been a truly successful season. Each team captain paid tribute to the coaches who have worked so hard with each team, and as ever the efforts of club physio Miriam Williams were gratefully acknowledged. The gargantuan workload borne by club captain Karen ‘Jock’ Findlay was also recognised by Richmond stalwart Terri Siwek.

The efforts of Club person of the year, Jen Mullaney, were typified by her marshalling of the groupies who lined the red carpet as guests arrived. Player of the year awards were presented to Alice Richardson (1^st XV), Hannah Farquharsan (2^nd XV) and Kate Clements (3^rd XV). The players’ polls for team mates who had contributed most to the success of each team resulted in player’s player trophies being presented to Karen Jones (1^st XV), Jessie Matiaszuk (2^nd XV) and Terri Siwek (3^rd XV). Anna Butler marked the end of the first of many successful Richmond seasons by taking home the Most Improved Player trophy. Rowena Burnfield, who in one short season has risen from novice to the England U19 squad, was a clear winner of the Newcomer of the Year trophy.

As the presentations drew to a close, two distinguished Richmond playing careers were recognised as Helen Ives and Nicki Drinkwater were jointly presented the Sue Dorrington Trophy for 10 years of loyal service to the club. A further presentation of a framed shirt was given to Nicki, joint 1^st XV captain for the season just closed, to mark her retirement from rugby. Finally, Richmond’s ‘famous five’ contemporary players who have reached 100 1^st XV league and cup games were honoured. Special 100 matches caps were presented to Nicki Drinkwater, Karen Findlay, Terri Siwek, Jenny ‘TJ’ Sutton and Sharon Whitehead.