Cornwall Women missed out on a place at Twickenham as they lost at Durham in the County Championship semi-final.
The hosts scored three tries in the final 16 minutes to secure a 25-17 victory in their Gill Burns Cup Division Two tie.
Tries from Tia Larson, Joey Sandercock and Becky Bennett had given the Duchy a 17-10 lead with twenty minutes to go.
But the hosts proved too strong in the latter part of the match as they reached the final in three unconverted attempts and had a chance of promotion to the top level.
Cornwall will remain in the second tier for the third year running after winning the third division of the County Championship in 2022.