RFUW
Watch for free as England Women take on World Champions at Twickenham
By Julia Hutton, RFUW Media Manager
On November 21st the reigning RBS 6 Nations and Nations Cup champions England Women will take on world champions New Zealand in the Investec Challenge Double Header at the home of England Rugby, Twickenham, and you can watch them for free! Entry to this historic women’s international will open at 415pm following the conclusion of the England men’s match against the All Blacks. Kick-off is at 445pm. Never before have England men and women played a double header match and with England playing the world champions just nine months before the start of the 2010 IRB Women’s Rugby World Cup in London, rugby fans from both sides of the world will get the chance to have a sneak preview at women’s rugby most competitive teams. England Women’s Head Coach Gary Street said: “We have had a fantastic start to the season, winning the Nations Cup in Canada. Out there, Canada had tremendous support from the home crowd and it would be great if England got that support in November. We’ve always had good crowds at our home games but it would be great to see more fans get behind the England women’s team. Certainly that extra support could make all the difference when we play the world champions.” England will also play the Black Ferns on November 14th at Esher RFC, kick-off 4pm, with admittance £5 for adults and £2 for Under 16s. Tickets are available on the day. England A will also play New Zealand on November 17th at Esher RFC, kick-off 7pm and entry is free. England retained their Nations Cup title in style in August recording a clean sheet of wins against the USA, France, South Africa and Canada in Toronto. England in fact wrapped up the title with one game in hand, and en-route scored an impressive 126 points and conceded just 15. Street added: “The key to this championship success was our strong defence. Allied to this our game management was excellent playing in the right areas at the right times. The tour has been a tremendous success overall and we are now looking forward to the start of the season and the challenges to come."
Havant have set sail!
Havant Ladies Rugby Club made their debut participation in The Ship Inn’s Annual Raft Race at Langston this summer. Their raft took the form of a rugby pitch, complete with posts, and had a crew of six ladies from Havant Rugby FC. The ladies proudly completed the course and won the judges choice trophy. Sarah Bailey of Havant Ladies worked tirelessly to organise the building of the raft and rallying the troops on the day. Havant supporters handed out leaflets in an effort to recruit more players to the squad and to encourage more interest in Ladies Rugby. Havant’s ladies team was started two years ago and has grown from a handful of enthusiastic novices to a team of dedicated ladies who are keen to put the ladies team on the map at Havant. The ladies are now fully integrated into the Havant club and have enjoyed a busy summer, participating in a summer touch rugby tournament at Havant alongside the senior male teams, and have attended tough pre-season training as a whole club as part of Havant’s One Club initiative to bring all teams within the club together. Havant ladies are still a developing side and welcome both complete novices and experienced players of any age into the team. If you would like to find out more, please contact maria.gittoes@btinternet.com
Women’s U18s 2009/2010 Talent Development Group
The RFUW has announced the Under 18 Talent Development Group (TDG) for the 2009/2010 season. Following selection from the RFUW Regional Programme and High Performance Academies (HPAs), and a three day training camp at Wellington College in Berkshire, 34 players have been selected into the TDG programme for the forthcoming season. In its fourth year the TDG programme is designed to provide the very best U18s players with an individualised, planned and progressive player development programme. The group provides a step-up from county and regional rugby and aims to raise the standard of England representative players and squads for future years. The 34 selected players in this year’s group will attend another TDG camp in August at Wellington College, as well as national and local sessions over the season. They will receive core rugby skill development, game understanding, strength and conditioning education and development. Tom Stokes, the RFUW’s Player Development Manager, said: “The standard of the players is improving year on year and this year’s selection was very tough. This is testament to the work that the RFUW Club and Coach Officers have been delivering across the regions over the last year.”
