Cumberland Lawn Tennis Club’s women are hoping to regain a national title at the Aegon Team Tennis finals later this year, after securing a trip to Bournemouth with success in their play-off.

The club won the event in 2013 and 2014 and are in the running for a third crown after seeing off hosts Huddersfield recently.

The National League is split into four divisions, with Cumberland competing in the South East group, and all team members are current and former professionals, top national juniors and those who have played to a high level in the UK and USA.

West Hampstead’s Harriet Dart competed in the women’s doubles at Wimbledon last month, losing to leading British player Heather Watson and Naomi Broady, after also losing in singles qualifying event, and has a career high of 277 in the world.

Cumberland’s Naomi Cavaday won singles and two doubles titles on the ITF circuit and reached a ranking of 174 during her own professional career.

League matches are played in April, May and June and consist of four singles and two doubles rubbers, with Cumberland finishing third in the final standings after suffering defeats in a pair of tough matches to Wilton and David Lloyd Raynes Park, to qualify for the play-offs.

Cavaday, Megan Forster, Jessica Jackson, Pippa Horn and captain Anjoli Foster travelled up to Yorkshire to take on Huddersfield LTC, who had finished second in the North group, and combined to good effect to secure a 5-1 win and a place at the finals.

The top eight teams in the UK will battle it out at the West Hants Club in Bournemouth for the right to be crowned national champions on the weekend of September 8-10.

And the competition is a straight knockout, with the quarter-final ties to be drawn the day before play starts, with the semi-finals and final then played later on.

Skipper Foster said: “I am really pleased that we have managed to reach the National Finals for another year. It has been a real team effort throughout the season.

“At Cumberland we pride ourselves on having great team spirit and I think that has really shone through this year.

“We are very excited for the finals. There will be some strong competition this year, but we are going to give it our best shot.”