CHESHAM United Ladies and the South Bucks Netball Association are both celebrating after winning the lottery this week.

United capped off a successful season on the field with success off it when they received a lottery grant for £1,257 from the Awards For All arm of the Lottery Programme.

But they were outgunned by the South Bucks Netball Association who scooped a cheque for £1,643 on the same day.

The Association, which holds its annual Workshop Tournament at Kingsmead on Sunday, will use the cash for coaching, court hire, tournament fees and equipment.

A spokesperson for the body said: "It's a tremendous boost. It is a lot of money for netball to receive but not a lot of money for netball to spend."

In Wycombe alone there are 80 netball teams playing each week.

Chesham United were just as delighted with their windfall.

The all-conquering ladies team, which won the League and Cup double this year to be promoted to the South East Combination, will use the cash to foster continued success over the next few years.

They plan to invest in their youth section , buying balls, kit and mini goals for their newly formed junior sides.

First team player and chairman Lisa Welling joked: "It's the biggest win I've ever had on the lottery and we will be making sure it is money well spent. We didn't get an award last year so it is money that we really needed."

Phil Stevens, awards officer for the south east, said after handing over the latest grants: "The groups that have been awarded grants are quite diverse, but what they have in common is a commitment to involving people from the local community in their work."

And he offered other groups encouragement to submit their own applications.

He said: "Relatively small sums of money can be of enormous benefit. We want to hear from other small groups with similar projects and we urge them to ring us on 01483 462943 for an informal chat or 0845 600 2040 for an application pack."