A PUBLIC school insisted yesterday that it acted ''reasonably'' by selecting a young female teacher for redundancy because she could not coach rugby.

Strathallan school told an industrial tribunal in Dundee that Mrs Lorna Greenwood was made redundant last September because there were too many history teachers and she had fewer ''extra curricular responsibilities'' than other members of he department.

She was the only full-time woman history teacher and the only member of the department unable to coach sport at the predominantly male school.

Mrs Greenwood claimed she was unfairly selected because she was a woman and upset the ''old boys network'' when she announced plans to marry.

Campbell Donaldson, for Mrs Greenwood, said: ''This selection criteria was indirect discrimination given that my client was one of only a handful of women teachers at a school where most of the pupils are boys. This meant that she did not have the same opportunities to become involved in extra curricular activities because she could not coach boys games.''

The tribunal will give its judgment later.