Much to celebrate in girls’ rugby
This is an exciting time for women’s and girls’ rugby, with the Red Roses ranked No 1 in the world, participation in England rising every year, and the aim of reaching 100,000 registered female players by 2027.
On International Day of the Girl, we shine a spotlight on some of the great things happening in girls’ rugby across the country.
Festival of Rugby
Last Saturday, RAF Halton in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire hosted the sixth edition of their annual girls’ rugby festival. Teams from across the home counties had a great time as, in just a single day, 273 games were played by 93 teams across four age groups. That meant that more than 1,500 girls enjoyed competing.
The event, organised by SecureCloud+, saw U12, U14, U16 and U18 age groups involved and over £20,000 raised for the Scotty’s Little Soldiers charity.
“We believe the event is the biggest girls’ rugby festival in the world. In the past six years that we’ve been doing the event, it has grown from 20 teams to 93 teams. Our hope is to continue to grow it next year and to use this national tournament as a vehicle to get more girls in the UK playing this great game.” said Peter Williamson, CEO at SecureCloud+.
Ampthill’s roaring success
Over the summer, Ampthill RUFC ran free ROAR camps for girls for the second year running. The camps aim to both attract prospective players to try out rugby, while also keeping current players engaged with the team and the sport in the off season.
This summer saw more than 135 players enjoying the camps over three days and the girls were lucky enough to have Saracens and USA player Lottie Clapp as well as Ampthill club captain Charlie Beckett helping to coach them.
The camps helped to reinforce the club’s thriving girls’ section which currently has over 80 players from U12s to U18s, as well as many girls playing in the minis section.
Joining forces for the East Kent Viragos
This season, Canterbury Rugby Club launched a new girls’ section, which they hope will be a game changer for female rugby players across Kent. Under the title For Girls, By Girls, the club will provide rugby coaching by members of their senior women’s team for U12s to U18s players from Canterbury, Thanet, Dover, and Deal.
Virago Team Manager Becky McCracken says: "Canterbury Rugby Club's girls' section is set to empower girls who want to play rugby and to provide a great environment for girls to excel in the sport. It's a thrilling new chapter for Kent's young female rugby enthusiasts, one that promises to make waves in the world of rugby."
With this year’s brand-new WXV tournament in New Zealand, a home Rugby World Cup in 2025, plus the landscape of girls’ rugby looking as good as it does, the goal of getting more girls playing rugby is well underway and the path for future Red Roses is clear.
Right now, Allianz Inner Warrior camps are attracting players nationwide, having already helped to introduce 25,000 women and girls to rugby over recent years.
Find your local Allianz Inner Warrior Camp or your local club, click here.
