A RADCLIFFE schoolgirl is "trying" for the top in the rough and tumble sporting world of rugby.

Kirsty Smith (15) has just been selected to play for the Lancashire U-16 Girls rugby league team.

Kirsty, a pupil at Coney Green High School, plays her first county match against Yorkshire on March 24.

She said: "I've been into rugby since I was a toddler because I come from Wigan, which is a rugby town."

When she moved to Cross Lane, Radcliffe, and started at Coney Green, she mentioned her interest in the sport to her art teacher who put her in contact with Rochdale Hawks girls' team.

"I play prop for them and we've just won the league," said a delighted Kirsty, whose ultimate ambition is to play for the Great Britain Ladies' team.