"IT'S still sinking in if I'm honest and part of me wonders if they've made a mistake and asked the wrong person," says Paula Bradbury.

A few days have passed since members of the Cheshire RFU's executive committee voted unanimously in favour of her being appointed as the next chairman.

She will be the first woman to lead them, and unsurprisingly she is feeling proud.

"And a bit overwhelmed," she adds.

"I don't know when it will feel real."

There is time to get used to the idea at least, and she will act as understudy to Colin Free before he stands down in 2019.

Before then she expects to learn, and take in, plenty.

She need not wonder though, for the governing body in the county have picked the candidate they consider the best.

"Colin has done the job for a decade," John Downham, the committee's secretary, told the Guardian.

"If somebody with Paula's skill and personality wasn't around, he wouldn't be standing down."

He said that Bradbury's modesty, as much as her enthusiasm for improving access to the sport for those that haven't previously had any, had helped them make up their mind.

When her daughter and friends had nowhere to play after showing an interest in rugby, she created a team for them.

That was at Winnington Park, where her son was part of a junior side.

Now, four years on, the club is home to a ladies' team as well as two more for young girls.

The impact of her relentless drive is demonstrated by the warmth of messages left for her since news of her appointment became public.

Sue Day, president at Wasps, wrote one.

"You think you're going around inside a bubble and nobody's really taking that much notice," laughs Bradbury.

"Then Sue Day sends a message on Twitter asking me to follow her. I thought 'oh my God!'"

She notes that others have worked in rugby administration for much longer, making her a relative newcomer still.

However a list of achievements, in a short space of time, is what makes her stand out.

Downham perhaps summed it up best: 'Paula gets things done.'

"I think it's more the fact I can't sit still," she says.

"I was reminded of that recently while I was on holiday. I can't lie by a pool.

"So I got up, crossed the road, and tried surfing at the beach instead. That's me."

Her approach to rugby is no different.

She remains on the committee at Winnington, and played for the ladies' team there until injury stopped her from doing so.

Bradbury has been chairman of the women and girls' rugby forum for the county, and has played an active role putting in place a coaching structure for Cheshire's representative teams that is already helping them to produce improved results on the field.

A conversation with her son and daughter provided reassurance she could take on another role.

"They said, 'Mum, you love doing this stuff'," recalls Bradbury.

"They'd rather I get stuck into that than be sat around the house!

"I won't back down from a challenge, and if I can get other people who feel the same way about rugby that I do to put themselves in a position where they can make positive changes then I'll have succeeded.

"I'm excited, nervous too, but I'm mindful as well of the part played by other people - guys like Simon Verbickas and David Westhead - that have helped me to reach this point.

"For me, there's a pay back element to this.

"They've put faith in me, and I want to deliver."