AFTER a three-year absence, rugby union is back at Ambleside.

The newly formed Ambleside Centurions may only have been training for a month, but they gave a great account of themselves in their debut game when they hosted Whitehaven at Galava Park last Saturday.

Named in honour of the town’s historical ties with the Romans, who built a nearby settlement and fort, hard-working officials have been busily decorating the clubhouse and upgrading the pitch and floodlights.

And after building up a squad of 25 players, they took to the field for the first time in front of a good crowd and showed plenty of determination in the early stages.

Whitehaven took the lead but Ambleside came back with a try from Sam Grierson. They put together some excellent moves with Matt Middlemiss and Doug Elgar particularly eyecatching, and though Whitehaven eventually ran out 17-5 winners, there was plenty to build on for the future.