Sarah Potter
Sarah Potter talks to the ambitious administrator who is the driving force behind the sport
CAROL ISHERWOOD has worked magic on women's rugby, so it seems only proper that she has been mixing it with J. K. Rowling, the creator of Harry Potter. The meeting was a touch surreal, because it was arranged by the Queen, who hosted a lunch last summer for the nation's most successful females. The author's world-storming fame demanded her presence, but the largely unknown Isherwood has a dazzling list of credits, too.
The 43-year-old started a women's rugby club at Leeds University in 1981 when she was a history student, was a founder member of the Rugby Football Union for Women (RFUW) two years later, captained the first Great Britain and then England teams later that decade, was appointed OBE last year and now, as the union's director of rugby, oversees a burgeoning game from her office at Twickenham stadium.
"It's funny where you find yourself," Isherwood said, with trademark understatement. "The truth is that 20 years ago none of the RFUW founder members had any idea what we were taking on or how the sport was going to boom. We simply wanted a structure so that we could organise a league. Then J. K. Rowling tells me that her daughter wants to play rugby; I must have just stood there looking dazed."
Few, though, would imagine Isherwood lost for words. Talking rugby is a vocation, progress a must. So the Super Fours -a tournament for the 88 elite players in England -continues this weekend, at the Broadstreet club, near Coventry, with a few changes. "It's in its fifth season and has been very successful for the players and the selectors in the lead-up to our Six Nations tournament," Isherwood said. "It's raised standards, so this season we're running it over three consecutive weekends. We're also not assigning coaches to the teams. We want the players to have the extra responsibility, so that they can develop their decision-making and problem-solving."
Isherwood is a Level Three coach -she was the first woman in England to reach that standard -but as the game's leading administrator, her difficulty is how to get the green light to host the next World Cup. The first such tournament, held in Cardiff in 1991, had Isherwood's fingerprints all over it. The 2006 version the fifth for the women -would be a lost opportunity, Isherwood believes, if it were not held in Britain. The International Rugby Board (IRB), though, seems reluctant to agree to the RFUW's costings.
"UK Sport have offered us a grant of Pounds 250,000 to help stage the World Cup," Isherwood said, "and the Rugby Football Union, the men's governing body, with whom we have increasingly strong links, have also agreed to help. I'm not aware of any other country bidding to stage it and we've been in negotiations with the IRB for six months. The finance doesn't seem to be enough for the IRB in terms of what they're willing to put in, but I don't want to cut too many corners in our bid.
It's vital for the women's game that the World Cup be a showcase for everything that's good, which includes hosting the tournament properly."
Quite so, since 34 nations have officially registered an interest in participating. The inaugural event of 1991, when England lost to the United States in the final, included only 12 countries.
"Deborah Griffin, who is still the RFUW's honorary treasurer, pretty much ran it all," Isherwood said. "It came about because a group of us who'd played in the first international, when we were known as Great Britain -said, 'Why don't we have a World Cup?' We didn't have much money, but Cardiff City Council and Sport England were fantastic, as were the hordes of volunteers."
The latest official estimates put the number of women playing regularly at club level at almost 8,000. Up to 20,000 children participate in either primary or secondary schools and last season a record 120 teams in the under-16 age group were registered with the RFUW.
Isherwood is overseeing a budget of Pounds 1 million. The sense of rags to riches is acute, especially given the financial restrictions that surrounded the first international in 1986. "On the morning of the match I had one mate going down the motorway to collect the shirts, which were late from the suppliers, and another at the airport to meet the French," Isherwood said. "They were expecting a bus to collect them, but I hadn't even thought of that. It was like, 'Here's your Tube tickets.' Stuff like that deepens friendships, although I'm glad to say we do things a bit more professionally these days."
The Times (London, England) (Oct 7, 2004): p88
Showing posts with label Growth. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Growth. Show all posts
Thursday, 7 October 2004
Tuesday, 15 June 2004
I toughed it out with women's rugby team -and lived.
Stefanie Marsh
"CARNAGE" is how it was described. Last weekend, injuries resulting from the women's National Festival of Rugby earned the tournament the sobriquet the Battle of Lichfield.
Ankles were sprained and muscles were ruptured. A hip was dislocated and bones were broken. So numerous were the casualties from the two-day tournament that emergency services classified it as a "major incident".
At one stage ambulance teams had to mobilise helicopters because they had run out of vehicles.
In the words of one Staffordshire ambulance spokesman, Bob Lee: "The girls came from all over the country for the tournament, which was a knockout. And knockout was an appropriate choice of word."
There are now a record 8,000 women and girls playing rugby in 500 teams across Britain, with growth boosted by the England men winning the Rugby World Cup in Sydney.
Inevitably, a journalist had to get to the bottom of this success story. More inevitably still, only the weediest, most cowardly journalist would do. To paraphrase my thoughts as I made my way to meet some of the hardest women Britain: "You? You will be flattened."
And so it was that I found myself face to cauliflower ear with some of the nation's top women rugby players on Thursday evening.
Wasps, the favourites to win the women's Rugby world National Cup next Sunday, had agreed to interrupt their training to show this sports-shy ingenue in oversized shorts the ropes. Their mantra: "Rugby is a contact sport, not a violent sport."
I must admit to not really believing that last bit, having read about Susie Appleby's incredible bravery during a trial match in Loughborough.
In the course of the game, the scrum half with the England women's rugby union received a nasty gash on her face.
She was given two options: either have the stitches across her cheek under anaesthetic and quit the game or have the doctor sew her face together without a painkiller. She went for the "live embroidery" option.
Despite my expectations, this gathering of the country's finest women's team did not resemble the inside of an accident and emergency department.
Talk of the "dangers of the sport" were dismissed with a snort or a wave of the hand -no broken fingers in evidence. Though it is claimed by its practitioners that women's rugby is Britain's fastest-growing sport, coverage of the game is often unfairly confined to hand-wringing pieces about its violence, many of the Wasps complained. A case in point is Norman Wells, the director of Family and Youth Concern, who said this week that "girls just aren't made for playing rugby".
"That kind of attitude is 20 years old and utter rubbish," said Paula George, the former England captain, a statuesque woman of 35 who has broken her collarbone in the course of her career but looks like a swimsuit model.
George, like many of the women who reach this level, is a purist in the mould of Roy Keane, if Keane were a charismatic black woman from Wales without a temper.
She has ruthlessly cut dairy products, red meat and bread from her diet and drinks alcohol -a "poison" -only on special occasions. That translates as four times over the past 12 months.
But George knew that beyond sticking to an impossibly strict diet or winning the semi-finals this Saturday, there lies a bigger challenge ahead today: the prospect of initiating me to the game.
Rosie Williams, the team's managing director and keen rugby player, and Zuri Toppin, the team's volunteer co- ordinator and a former Canadian international, were assigned the task and cheerfully lied to me about my prospects.
Apparently, neither my low pain threshold nor my natural aversion to sport is a barrier to my becoming an international rugby star. "First rule of tackling," said Williams pointing to her bottom, "cheek to arse-cheek. Yours to mine."
I obliged and experienced the dull pang of humiliation associated with not being very good at sport while Williams feigned collapse.
Rugby play-offs, page 40
THIRTY YEARS OF GIVING IT A TRY
Women's Rugby was first played seriously in Britain in the late 1970s
The game was initially played mainly by student teams such as Keele University, University College London, Marjons and St Mary's Hospital
The rules of the game are the same for men and women
Shelley Rae, who plays outside half for Wasps and England, is known to fans of the game as "the Female Jonny Wilkinson"
The Women's Rugby Football Union (WRFU) was formed in 1983 and was responsible for rugby in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales
In 1994, the Rugby Football Union for Women (RFUW) was formed in England, with each of the Home Counties overseeing their own counties
The RFUW is affiliated to, but independent of, the RFU. It organises its women's leagues and competitions separately and has to find its own sponsorship
The RFUW has more than 350 clubs, from under-16s to seniors
Top men's clubs, such as Wasps, Saracens, Worcester, Rosslyn Park, London Welsh, Blackheath and Harlequins now have women's teams
The first women's International in Britain took place in April 1986 at Richmond Athletic Ground in London. Great Britain played France but were beaten 14-8
Cardiff hosted the first Women's Rugby World Cup in 1991
Twelve countries participated in the the first Women's Rugby World Cup, a week-long tournament England reached the final but lost to the USA 19-6
England got its revenge at the second World Cup in Scotland in 1994, beating the USA 38-23
The third World Cup in 1998 was the first to be officially recognised by the International Rugby Board
New Zealand defeated England, the defending champions, in the semi-finals of the third World Cup by 44 points to 11 and went on to win the competition
A record 16 nations, including Japan and Samoa, took part in the most recent World Cup in Barcelona in 2002. In the final England lost to New Zealand by 19-9
The Times (London, England) (May 15, 2004): p8
"CARNAGE" is how it was described. Last weekend, injuries resulting from the women's National Festival of Rugby earned the tournament the sobriquet the Battle of Lichfield.
Ankles were sprained and muscles were ruptured. A hip was dislocated and bones were broken. So numerous were the casualties from the two-day tournament that emergency services classified it as a "major incident".
At one stage ambulance teams had to mobilise helicopters because they had run out of vehicles.
In the words of one Staffordshire ambulance spokesman, Bob Lee: "The girls came from all over the country for the tournament, which was a knockout. And knockout was an appropriate choice of word."
There are now a record 8,000 women and girls playing rugby in 500 teams across Britain, with growth boosted by the England men winning the Rugby World Cup in Sydney.
Inevitably, a journalist had to get to the bottom of this success story. More inevitably still, only the weediest, most cowardly journalist would do. To paraphrase my thoughts as I made my way to meet some of the hardest women Britain: "You? You will be flattened."
And so it was that I found myself face to cauliflower ear with some of the nation's top women rugby players on Thursday evening.
Wasps, the favourites to win the women's Rugby world National Cup next Sunday, had agreed to interrupt their training to show this sports-shy ingenue in oversized shorts the ropes. Their mantra: "Rugby is a contact sport, not a violent sport."
I must admit to not really believing that last bit, having read about Susie Appleby's incredible bravery during a trial match in Loughborough.
In the course of the game, the scrum half with the England women's rugby union received a nasty gash on her face.
She was given two options: either have the stitches across her cheek under anaesthetic and quit the game or have the doctor sew her face together without a painkiller. She went for the "live embroidery" option.
Despite my expectations, this gathering of the country's finest women's team did not resemble the inside of an accident and emergency department.
Talk of the "dangers of the sport" were dismissed with a snort or a wave of the hand -no broken fingers in evidence. Though it is claimed by its practitioners that women's rugby is Britain's fastest-growing sport, coverage of the game is often unfairly confined to hand-wringing pieces about its violence, many of the Wasps complained. A case in point is Norman Wells, the director of Family and Youth Concern, who said this week that "girls just aren't made for playing rugby".
"That kind of attitude is 20 years old and utter rubbish," said Paula George, the former England captain, a statuesque woman of 35 who has broken her collarbone in the course of her career but looks like a swimsuit model.
George, like many of the women who reach this level, is a purist in the mould of Roy Keane, if Keane were a charismatic black woman from Wales without a temper.
She has ruthlessly cut dairy products, red meat and bread from her diet and drinks alcohol -a "poison" -only on special occasions. That translates as four times over the past 12 months.
But George knew that beyond sticking to an impossibly strict diet or winning the semi-finals this Saturday, there lies a bigger challenge ahead today: the prospect of initiating me to the game.
Rosie Williams, the team's managing director and keen rugby player, and Zuri Toppin, the team's volunteer co- ordinator and a former Canadian international, were assigned the task and cheerfully lied to me about my prospects.
Apparently, neither my low pain threshold nor my natural aversion to sport is a barrier to my becoming an international rugby star. "First rule of tackling," said Williams pointing to her bottom, "cheek to arse-cheek. Yours to mine."
I obliged and experienced the dull pang of humiliation associated with not being very good at sport while Williams feigned collapse.
Rugby play-offs, page 40
THIRTY YEARS OF GIVING IT A TRY
Women's Rugby was first played seriously in Britain in the late 1970s
The game was initially played mainly by student teams such as Keele University, University College London, Marjons and St Mary's Hospital
The rules of the game are the same for men and women
Shelley Rae, who plays outside half for Wasps and England, is known to fans of the game as "the Female Jonny Wilkinson"
The Women's Rugby Football Union (WRFU) was formed in 1983 and was responsible for rugby in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales
In 1994, the Rugby Football Union for Women (RFUW) was formed in England, with each of the Home Counties overseeing their own counties
The RFUW is affiliated to, but independent of, the RFU. It organises its women's leagues and competitions separately and has to find its own sponsorship
The RFUW has more than 350 clubs, from under-16s to seniors
Top men's clubs, such as Wasps, Saracens, Worcester, Rosslyn Park, London Welsh, Blackheath and Harlequins now have women's teams
The first women's International in Britain took place in April 1986 at Richmond Athletic Ground in London. Great Britain played France but were beaten 14-8
Cardiff hosted the first Women's Rugby World Cup in 1991
Twelve countries participated in the the first Women's Rugby World Cup, a week-long tournament England reached the final but lost to the USA 19-6
England got its revenge at the second World Cup in Scotland in 1994, beating the USA 38-23
The third World Cup in 1998 was the first to be officially recognised by the International Rugby Board
New Zealand defeated England, the defending champions, in the semi-finals of the third World Cup by 44 points to 11 and went on to win the competition
A record 16 nations, including Japan and Samoa, took part in the most recent World Cup in Barcelona in 2002. In the final England lost to New Zealand by 19-9
The Times (London, England) (May 15, 2004): p8
Sunday, 3 December 2000
Letter: Taking issue with Girl Power.(Observer Sports Magazine)
Gill Burns and Emma Lindsey
I was pleased to see that your magazine recognises the role of women in sport with your 'Girl Power' section in OSM . I was, however, bitterly disappointed to see that you have ignored the rugby union players totally in your selection. Women's rugby is no longer a minority sport and I am sure the 10,000-plus women who play up and down the country each week will also be amazed that you have not recognised our sport.
Only today there was an article in your newspaper reporting on Kate Hoey's interest and support of our game and yet our international players from all over Britain have been ignored. England finished third at the 1998 World Cup and only last month beat the USA, who were ranked second, to go up one place. England also cruised to a victory in last seasons Five Nations Championships.Perhaps Paula George, our current captain, should have been included in the top 20 women sports stars? How can you ignore a team that is now ranked two in the world? There are only a few of your 20 choices who are ranked higher than the current England squad.
Gill Burns
England captain 1994-1999
Vice president, Womens Sports Foundation
Emma Lindsey - who masterminded the compiling of the list - replies:
Compiling a top 20 of the British sportswomen was always going to be problematic as much because of deciding who to leave out as who to include, especially given that women in sport don't get much of a look in on the back pages. Although there was an element of subjectivity in the decision-making, ultimately editorial concensus was reached on the grounds of achievement on an international stage, relative to the depth and standard of competition within each discipline, with an added proviso to give a shout (where appropriate) to champions in sports which receive no coverage at all.
The Observer (London, England) (Dec 3, 2000): p6
I was pleased to see that your magazine recognises the role of women in sport with your 'Girl Power' section in OSM . I was, however, bitterly disappointed to see that you have ignored the rugby union players totally in your selection. Women's rugby is no longer a minority sport and I am sure the 10,000-plus women who play up and down the country each week will also be amazed that you have not recognised our sport.
Only today there was an article in your newspaper reporting on Kate Hoey's interest and support of our game and yet our international players from all over Britain have been ignored. England finished third at the 1998 World Cup and only last month beat the USA, who were ranked second, to go up one place. England also cruised to a victory in last seasons Five Nations Championships.Perhaps Paula George, our current captain, should have been included in the top 20 women sports stars? How can you ignore a team that is now ranked two in the world? There are only a few of your 20 choices who are ranked higher than the current England squad.
Gill Burns
England captain 1994-1999
Vice president, Womens Sports Foundation
Emma Lindsey - who masterminded the compiling of the list - replies:
Compiling a top 20 of the British sportswomen was always going to be problematic as much because of deciding who to leave out as who to include, especially given that women in sport don't get much of a look in on the back pages. Although there was an element of subjectivity in the decision-making, ultimately editorial concensus was reached on the grounds of achievement on an international stage, relative to the depth and standard of competition within each discipline, with an added proviso to give a shout (where appropriate) to champions in sports which receive no coverage at all.
The Observer (London, England) (Dec 3, 2000): p6
Friday, 2 April 1999
Watsonians women's team
NIALL AITCHESON
WHILE former Tennent's Velvet Premier-ship champions Watsonians have spent most of this season fighting to steer clear of the relegation frame, it has by no means all been doom and gloom down Myreside way.
The club's fledgling women's team is poised to give them something to celebrate in south-west Edinburgh by lifting the Keyline SWRU Division Three title in their first year together.
They need only a victory at home to Aboyne in tomorrow's final league match to add yet another piece of silverware to the club's impressive collection of trophies, and founder Viki Mendelssohn admits their success has caught everyone unawares.
'It's hard to believe that we've come this far so quickly. It was only in August that I was approached by a number of girls new to the sport about the prospect of forming a team. They had no opportunity to break into the established Edinburgh women's sides, Accies and Wanderers, who are packed with international players,' she said.
'I managed to organise things through Gavin Hastings and we started out with just five players. Now we have a squad of 17 and the numbers are growing all the time. It's great the way we've been accepted by the men. To them, we're just another of the club's XVs.' Skipper Mendelssohn, who also founded the highly-successful Edinburgh Accies women's team ten years ago, has used her renowned powers of persuasion and persistence to recruit a number of rugby celebrities to boost the team's promotion push.
Scott Hastings, now Watsonians' director of rugby, has been along to lend a hand at training, while this week Henry Edwards has taken time off from preparing the Scottish Districts for Sunday's match against Spain to provide some useful pointers.
The ladies' success hasn't suprised their French coach Patrice Langlois, who has been involved in Scottish women's rugby for more than a decade.
He told Sportsmail: 'Generally, the standard of play in women' s rugby has improved dramatically since the World Cup was held here six years ago.
'It's amazing to think that half of the Watsonians girls had never played rugby before this season, but they have an advantage in that they tend to learn quicker than the guys.
'Most of them are at university but they are just as committed to making a go of their rugby. Some of the sides we've played against this year have been physically stronger than us, but we've become technically sound in various areas, particularly in the forwards.
'The girls have all the rugby skills and, perhaps most importantly, we've managed to get their fitness levels up.
'We've only had a handful of seasoned players like Viki and Scotland A hooker Pam Woodman to call upon, but the rugby newcomers have played their part superbly. It has been a real team effort and I'm proud of them.'
Langlois believes his charges will round off their restricted nine-game league programme in style against the team two places below them in the table and enable him to start preparing for life in the elite Division Two.
Despite Scottish rugby's long winter of discontent, the champagne could yet be flowing in the famous old clubhouse.
Source Citation
"Luck be a lady for Watsonians; Myreside welcomes the lasses with a winning touch." Daily Mail [London, England] 2 Apr. 1999
WHILE former Tennent's Velvet Premier-ship champions Watsonians have spent most of this season fighting to steer clear of the relegation frame, it has by no means all been doom and gloom down Myreside way.
The club's fledgling women's team is poised to give them something to celebrate in south-west Edinburgh by lifting the Keyline SWRU Division Three title in their first year together.
They need only a victory at home to Aboyne in tomorrow's final league match to add yet another piece of silverware to the club's impressive collection of trophies, and founder Viki Mendelssohn admits their success has caught everyone unawares.
'It's hard to believe that we've come this far so quickly. It was only in August that I was approached by a number of girls new to the sport about the prospect of forming a team. They had no opportunity to break into the established Edinburgh women's sides, Accies and Wanderers, who are packed with international players,' she said.
'I managed to organise things through Gavin Hastings and we started out with just five players. Now we have a squad of 17 and the numbers are growing all the time. It's great the way we've been accepted by the men. To them, we're just another of the club's XVs.' Skipper Mendelssohn, who also founded the highly-successful Edinburgh Accies women's team ten years ago, has used her renowned powers of persuasion and persistence to recruit a number of rugby celebrities to boost the team's promotion push.
Scott Hastings, now Watsonians' director of rugby, has been along to lend a hand at training, while this week Henry Edwards has taken time off from preparing the Scottish Districts for Sunday's match against Spain to provide some useful pointers.
The ladies' success hasn't suprised their French coach Patrice Langlois, who has been involved in Scottish women's rugby for more than a decade.
He told Sportsmail: 'Generally, the standard of play in women' s rugby has improved dramatically since the World Cup was held here six years ago.
'It's amazing to think that half of the Watsonians girls had never played rugby before this season, but they have an advantage in that they tend to learn quicker than the guys.
'Most of them are at university but they are just as committed to making a go of their rugby. Some of the sides we've played against this year have been physically stronger than us, but we've become technically sound in various areas, particularly in the forwards.
'The girls have all the rugby skills and, perhaps most importantly, we've managed to get their fitness levels up.
'We've only had a handful of seasoned players like Viki and Scotland A hooker Pam Woodman to call upon, but the rugby newcomers have played their part superbly. It has been a real team effort and I'm proud of them.'
Langlois believes his charges will round off their restricted nine-game league programme in style against the team two places below them in the table and enable him to start preparing for life in the elite Division Two.
Despite Scottish rugby's long winter of discontent, the champagne could yet be flowing in the famous old clubhouse.
Source Citation
"Luck be a lady for Watsonians; Myreside welcomes the lasses with a winning touch." Daily Mail [London, England] 2 Apr. 1999
Sunday, 12 April 1998
Rugby prepares for first live TV broadcast of National Cup final
JON HENDERSON
CLAIRE DONOVAN once failed to get a job because she played rugby union. 'The company I applied to turned me down because they felt I'd be far more committed to my rugby than my work, which was quite unfair.'
On the other hand, it does tell you something about the changing attitude towards what was once regarded as the quintessential chaps' game. Ten years ago, an employer would never have regarded a woman's involvement in rugby as the sort of distraction that might make her a liability. It might have raised an eyebrow, but hardly an objection.Now, though, thousands of women have crossed the touchline to cast off the traditional female role at rugby matches: providing her manly other half's team-mates with evidence of his predatory skills when he is not in the clubhouse demonstrating the liquid capacity of the male bladder. The Rugby Football Union for Women calculate that there are some 10,000 women playing the game in Britain at 270 clubs.
And there is a growing realisation that women's commitment to rugby in terms of training and practice is steadily closing the gap on men's, so the employer's misguided decision to turn down Claire Donovan did at least have the virtue of recognising that the game's rapidly expanding distaff side don't just turn up for rugby matches, fanny around for 80 minutes and spend the rest of the week buffing their nails.
A more important recognition of the advance of women's rugby takes place next Saturday, when the Bread for Life National Cup final becomes the first women's rugby union match in Britain to be televised live, with Sky dispatching 19 cameras and, among others, the former England and Lions scrum-half Dewi Morris to cover the game at the Stoop ground, home of Harlequins. Donovan will be there, too, a second-row forward in the Saracens team who have just won the Premier Division One title with an unbeaten record and hope to confirm their supremacy over their only serious rivals, Wasps, in the final.
Donovan, 26, from Cardiff
- she is also a Wales international - started playing rugby union when she was at Seale Hayne agricultural college in south Devon. 'I used to enjoy showjumping, but knew I'd never be particularly good at it, and was relatively successful at cross-country running, but absolutely hated it. Rugby was the one thing I was quite good at and actually enjoyed doing.'
She says the only aspect of rugby she had difficulty adapting to was the team thing. 'When I was show- jumping I used to go to a quiet corner of the warm-up area and just be nervous on my own. Suddenly I'd got 14 other people to be nervous with before a game, and that was quite hard.'
After Seale Hayne she moved to the South-East and, having finally overcome an ankle injury from horse-
riding, managed a full season with Canterbury in 1996-97. 'I got into the Welsh squad at the end of that season and felt I had to play at a higher standard to get my skill level up. I went to Saracens at the start of this season and graduated to the first team.'
So how hard does she train? 'Every weekday unless we've had a particularly demanding match, in which case I tend to take the Monday off. But we usually go sprint training twice a week and have club training on two other nights.
'Like the men's game, the emphasis has changed. We've lost the slow, fat forwards and everyone has had to work on their fitness and improving their speed. You have to be able to run and compete for 80 minutes, rather than scrum, walk to the next line-out and then potter about for a bit.
'I've lost two stone in the past two seasons (she is six feet and 11 and a half stone) and am fitter than I've ever been. Before, my lungs gave out before anything else; now my lungs are all right but my legs tend to go wobbly after 80 minutes.'
And in the dark recesses of the scrum, where all manner of unspeakable crimes are supposedly committed in the men's game, is the women's just as bad? 'No, I think that is one of the big differences between the two. My boyfriend hadn't really watched rugby at all until he started coming to see me play. He got quite interested in it and wanted to try playing the game himself until he went to watch a men's match. I think he was quite surprised by how much activity there was unrelated to the play.'
Away from the playing field, Donovan says the reaction to her rugby playing is generally positive, reflecting the acceptance of the women's game. 'A couple of people in the office pretend to be absolutely terrified of me and shrink away whenever I come near. And my previous boss was quite averse to me having a black eye when I came to work. One morning he said, 'Oh, nice black-eye day. Well done. Good match was it?' Then he came up to me a little later and said, 'Oh dear, Claire. We're not going to make a habit of this.'
'But most people can get past the women's rugby thing and, although it is relatively new, they take on board that you must have worked bloody hard to represent your country, which is nice. The farmer who looks after my horse down in Wales is a huge rugby fan and when he introduces me says, 'This is Claire, she's an international rugby player.' He's just as pleased as if I were Doddie Weir.'
And the employer who turned Claire Donovan down might be interested to know that she is now a highly successful technical manager for Tesco, driving the best part of 2,000 miles a week and 'dealing with suppliers from Zimbabwe to Inverness'.
'The difference between people who get to the top is how they manage their lifestyles. We've all probably got the same talent, but it's the will to do it, to fit in playing the game around your work. I was quite hurt that someone thought I wouldn't be any good at my job because I'd be too busy training.'
His loss, one suspects, has been the greater.
Source Citation
"Rugby: Claire and the girls Stoop to conquer: Jon Henderson on why thriving women's rugby deserves a TV cup final showcase." Observer [London, England] 12 Apr. 1998
CLAIRE DONOVAN once failed to get a job because she played rugby union. 'The company I applied to turned me down because they felt I'd be far more committed to my rugby than my work, which was quite unfair.'
On the other hand, it does tell you something about the changing attitude towards what was once regarded as the quintessential chaps' game. Ten years ago, an employer would never have regarded a woman's involvement in rugby as the sort of distraction that might make her a liability. It might have raised an eyebrow, but hardly an objection.Now, though, thousands of women have crossed the touchline to cast off the traditional female role at rugby matches: providing her manly other half's team-mates with evidence of his predatory skills when he is not in the clubhouse demonstrating the liquid capacity of the male bladder. The Rugby Football Union for Women calculate that there are some 10,000 women playing the game in Britain at 270 clubs.
And there is a growing realisation that women's commitment to rugby in terms of training and practice is steadily closing the gap on men's, so the employer's misguided decision to turn down Claire Donovan did at least have the virtue of recognising that the game's rapidly expanding distaff side don't just turn up for rugby matches, fanny around for 80 minutes and spend the rest of the week buffing their nails.
A more important recognition of the advance of women's rugby takes place next Saturday, when the Bread for Life National Cup final becomes the first women's rugby union match in Britain to be televised live, with Sky dispatching 19 cameras and, among others, the former England and Lions scrum-half Dewi Morris to cover the game at the Stoop ground, home of Harlequins. Donovan will be there, too, a second-row forward in the Saracens team who have just won the Premier Division One title with an unbeaten record and hope to confirm their supremacy over their only serious rivals, Wasps, in the final.
Donovan, 26, from Cardiff
- she is also a Wales international - started playing rugby union when she was at Seale Hayne agricultural college in south Devon. 'I used to enjoy showjumping, but knew I'd never be particularly good at it, and was relatively successful at cross-country running, but absolutely hated it. Rugby was the one thing I was quite good at and actually enjoyed doing.'
She says the only aspect of rugby she had difficulty adapting to was the team thing. 'When I was show- jumping I used to go to a quiet corner of the warm-up area and just be nervous on my own. Suddenly I'd got 14 other people to be nervous with before a game, and that was quite hard.'
After Seale Hayne she moved to the South-East and, having finally overcome an ankle injury from horse-
riding, managed a full season with Canterbury in 1996-97. 'I got into the Welsh squad at the end of that season and felt I had to play at a higher standard to get my skill level up. I went to Saracens at the start of this season and graduated to the first team.'
So how hard does she train? 'Every weekday unless we've had a particularly demanding match, in which case I tend to take the Monday off. But we usually go sprint training twice a week and have club training on two other nights.
'Like the men's game, the emphasis has changed. We've lost the slow, fat forwards and everyone has had to work on their fitness and improving their speed. You have to be able to run and compete for 80 minutes, rather than scrum, walk to the next line-out and then potter about for a bit.
'I've lost two stone in the past two seasons (she is six feet and 11 and a half stone) and am fitter than I've ever been. Before, my lungs gave out before anything else; now my lungs are all right but my legs tend to go wobbly after 80 minutes.'
And in the dark recesses of the scrum, where all manner of unspeakable crimes are supposedly committed in the men's game, is the women's just as bad? 'No, I think that is one of the big differences between the two. My boyfriend hadn't really watched rugby at all until he started coming to see me play. He got quite interested in it and wanted to try playing the game himself until he went to watch a men's match. I think he was quite surprised by how much activity there was unrelated to the play.'
Away from the playing field, Donovan says the reaction to her rugby playing is generally positive, reflecting the acceptance of the women's game. 'A couple of people in the office pretend to be absolutely terrified of me and shrink away whenever I come near. And my previous boss was quite averse to me having a black eye when I came to work. One morning he said, 'Oh, nice black-eye day. Well done. Good match was it?' Then he came up to me a little later and said, 'Oh dear, Claire. We're not going to make a habit of this.'
'But most people can get past the women's rugby thing and, although it is relatively new, they take on board that you must have worked bloody hard to represent your country, which is nice. The farmer who looks after my horse down in Wales is a huge rugby fan and when he introduces me says, 'This is Claire, she's an international rugby player.' He's just as pleased as if I were Doddie Weir.'
And the employer who turned Claire Donovan down might be interested to know that she is now a highly successful technical manager for Tesco, driving the best part of 2,000 miles a week and 'dealing with suppliers from Zimbabwe to Inverness'.
'The difference between people who get to the top is how they manage their lifestyles. We've all probably got the same talent, but it's the will to do it, to fit in playing the game around your work. I was quite hurt that someone thought I wouldn't be any good at my job because I'd be too busy training.'
His loss, one suspects, has been the greater.
Source Citation
"Rugby: Claire and the girls Stoop to conquer: Jon Henderson on why thriving women's rugby deserves a TV cup final showcase." Observer [London, England] 12 Apr. 1998
Monday, 6 April 1998
Growth of women's rugby
WOMEN'S rugby is enjoying a boom after small beginnings in 1983, when the Rugby Football Union for Women (RFUW) was formed with a hand ful of teams. The first in ternational was staged at Richmond in 1987, when a few doz en spectators watched a well-drilled France defeat Great Britain, which boasted sev eral outstanding individ uals but little cohesion as a team. Car diff hosted the first women's World Cup in 1988, which despite being run on a shoe string, attracted 12 countries.
Standards have im proved dramatically, thanks in part to the increased number of in ternational matches.
There are regular home internationals, and England took on Ireland at Worcester yester day.
Some 10,000 women now play and compete regularly at 330 clubs all over Brit ain. Although in the early days women's rug by was predominant ly a college and university sport, with few players taking up the game before their teens, growing numbers of schools offer touch rugby for girls as young as eight and intro duce the full-scale game to teenagers. Most universities field several women's sides. The top eight senior sides, in cluding Saracens, who field a high propor tion of the England team, and Old Leamingtonians, compete in a national Premier League.
There are two other nat ional leagues just be low them, as well as four regional leagues for less experienced players learn their craft.
RFUW also organises National Senior, Stu dent and Junior Cup competitions.
Most clubs wel come newcomers regard less of size, background or athletic prowess - coaching and fitness training are provided and, unlike most sports, rugby ac commodates all phys ical types because of the various skills re quired in different posit ions. For more details contact the RFUW on 01635 42333.
Copyright (C) The Times, 1998
Source Citation
"Ways and means; Rugby Union." Times [London, England] 6 Apr. 1998
Standards have im proved dramatically, thanks in part to the increased number of in ternational matches.
There are regular home internationals, and England took on Ireland at Worcester yester day.
Some 10,000 women now play and compete regularly at 330 clubs all over Brit ain. Although in the early days women's rug by was predominant ly a college and university sport, with few players taking up the game before their teens, growing numbers of schools offer touch rugby for girls as young as eight and intro duce the full-scale game to teenagers. Most universities field several women's sides. The top eight senior sides, in cluding Saracens, who field a high propor tion of the England team, and Old Leamingtonians, compete in a national Premier League.
There are two other nat ional leagues just be low them, as well as four regional leagues for less experienced players learn their craft.
RFUW also organises National Senior, Stu dent and Junior Cup competitions.
Most clubs wel come newcomers regard less of size, background or athletic prowess - coaching and fitness training are provided and, unlike most sports, rugby ac commodates all phys ical types because of the various skills re quired in different posit ions. For more details contact the RFUW on 01635 42333.
Copyright (C) The Times, 1998
Source Citation
"Ways and means; Rugby Union." Times [London, England] 6 Apr. 1998
Thursday, 2 April 1998
England reflect on Scotland defeat; women's rugby "one of the fastest-growing sports in the country"
England's rugby-playing women fumbled their chance to keep in step with the men when they lost to Scotland for the first time in their version of the Five Nations Championship. The grand slam belongs north of the border, but when England take on Ireland at Worcester on Sunday, they will have an extra incentive to return to winning ways.
It will be England's last competitive match before they begin their defence of the World Cup in Holland next month, when one of the key players will be Emma Mitchell, 31, the Saracens scrum half, who played in both previous tournaments after taking up the game in 1985.
"I started playing when I was at Loughborough University," she said. "I went there as a discus thrower and hockey player, but wanted to try another team sport. Jim Greenwood, who was a British Lion in the 1950s, was a lecturer there and he got involved with the women's team just as I took the game up. I was very lucky not to learn bad habits early on."
With barely half-a-dozen sides playing in England and Wales during the early 1980s, Mitchell found herself propelled into the England set-up. "That happened in my second year of playing and I won my first cap in 1988. I was one of the players - and there are still a few in the present squad - fortunate to become involved just as the sport really took off," she said.
The Sports Council has identified women's rugby as one of the fastest-growing sports in the country over the past decade. There are more than 200 club sides and as many university and youth teams.
Mitchell was among the founder members of Saracens in 1989 and the club has since won three league titles, with a fourth on the horizon, the National Cup and the National Sevens on four occasions. "It's good at the moment," she said, "because we fit alongside the men in that they're going for the premiership and cup double."
Although the men's team has moved to Watford, Mitchell believes the spirit built up at Southgate, their base before their move to Vicarage Road, has been retained. "Nigel Wray (the club owner) is a millionaire who has come into the sport as a true rugby fan. He is very supportive of us because he sees the future of the club as being very family-orientated. The atmosphere is great.
'We've had coaching sessions from Tony Diprose, the men's captain, Greg Bottomon, who is one of the hookers in the squad, and also from Paul Wallace, the British Isles prop. I think they (the men) still see their home as Bramley Road and they're in and out of there every day for training. If we happen to be playing, they come out on the touchline and watch."
Professionalism may have added glamour to the men's game, but, as amateurs, many of the women will be taking time out from their jobs to play for England in May. National Lottery funding has eased the financial burden - Mitchell estimated that it cost her Pounds 2,000 to play last year. "From my point of view, it has been ten years accumulating debt," she said.
As a commissioning editor, signing up academics to write textbooks for the higher education market, Mitchell is more fortunate than most. Her employer, Addison Wesley Longman, the publisher, is one of the few cash sponsors of the women's game, paying Pounds 10,000 to have its name printed on the sleeves of the England shirts.
"They also give me paid leave to play and extended lunch hours so that I can get to the gym and train," she said. "It does make a huge difference because most people use up all their holiday allowance playing for England." If the England players can retain the World Cup, won in Edinburgh in 1994, it will all seem worth it.
Of the 16 nations competing, New Zealand are the favourites, with England, Australia and the United States all capable of running off with the trophy - although Scotland's recent victory has raised some doubts about the England scrum.
"To be honest, France, Scotland, Spain and even Wales, on their day, could upset the whole cart and beat any one of us," Mitchell said. "The main thing is that the game is continuing to grow. There were only 12 sides in the last World Cup and that was the first time the game featured in the sports pages.
" We've only just started to get the recognition that has led to our present level of support. Whatever happens in Holland, that is definitely very exciting."
Copyright (C) The Times, 1998
Source Citation
Potter, Sarah. "Mitchell thrives on textbook technique; Rugby union." Times [London, England] 2 Apr. 1998
It will be England's last competitive match before they begin their defence of the World Cup in Holland next month, when one of the key players will be Emma Mitchell, 31, the Saracens scrum half, who played in both previous tournaments after taking up the game in 1985.
"I started playing when I was at Loughborough University," she said. "I went there as a discus thrower and hockey player, but wanted to try another team sport. Jim Greenwood, who was a British Lion in the 1950s, was a lecturer there and he got involved with the women's team just as I took the game up. I was very lucky not to learn bad habits early on."
With barely half-a-dozen sides playing in England and Wales during the early 1980s, Mitchell found herself propelled into the England set-up. "That happened in my second year of playing and I won my first cap in 1988. I was one of the players - and there are still a few in the present squad - fortunate to become involved just as the sport really took off," she said.
The Sports Council has identified women's rugby as one of the fastest-growing sports in the country over the past decade. There are more than 200 club sides and as many university and youth teams.
Mitchell was among the founder members of Saracens in 1989 and the club has since won three league titles, with a fourth on the horizon, the National Cup and the National Sevens on four occasions. "It's good at the moment," she said, "because we fit alongside the men in that they're going for the premiership and cup double."
Although the men's team has moved to Watford, Mitchell believes the spirit built up at Southgate, their base before their move to Vicarage Road, has been retained. "Nigel Wray (the club owner) is a millionaire who has come into the sport as a true rugby fan. He is very supportive of us because he sees the future of the club as being very family-orientated. The atmosphere is great.
'We've had coaching sessions from Tony Diprose, the men's captain, Greg Bottomon, who is one of the hookers in the squad, and also from Paul Wallace, the British Isles prop. I think they (the men) still see their home as Bramley Road and they're in and out of there every day for training. If we happen to be playing, they come out on the touchline and watch."
Professionalism may have added glamour to the men's game, but, as amateurs, many of the women will be taking time out from their jobs to play for England in May. National Lottery funding has eased the financial burden - Mitchell estimated that it cost her Pounds 2,000 to play last year. "From my point of view, it has been ten years accumulating debt," she said.
As a commissioning editor, signing up academics to write textbooks for the higher education market, Mitchell is more fortunate than most. Her employer, Addison Wesley Longman, the publisher, is one of the few cash sponsors of the women's game, paying Pounds 10,000 to have its name printed on the sleeves of the England shirts.
"They also give me paid leave to play and extended lunch hours so that I can get to the gym and train," she said. "It does make a huge difference because most people use up all their holiday allowance playing for England." If the England players can retain the World Cup, won in Edinburgh in 1994, it will all seem worth it.
Of the 16 nations competing, New Zealand are the favourites, with England, Australia and the United States all capable of running off with the trophy - although Scotland's recent victory has raised some doubts about the England scrum.
"To be honest, France, Scotland, Spain and even Wales, on their day, could upset the whole cart and beat any one of us," Mitchell said. "The main thing is that the game is continuing to grow. There were only 12 sides in the last World Cup and that was the first time the game featured in the sports pages.
" We've only just started to get the recognition that has led to our present level of support. Whatever happens in Holland, that is definitely very exciting."
Copyright (C) The Times, 1998
Source Citation
Potter, Sarah. "Mitchell thrives on textbook technique; Rugby union." Times [London, England] 2 Apr. 1998
Sunday, 13 November 1994
Prejudice: Jeff Probyn
ENGLISH women's rugby union has come a long way since an after-dinner speaker at London Irish said they could do with more players who look like Farrah Fawcett-Majors and play like Wade Dooley instead of the other way round. Victory in 24 of their 25 international matches should surely have convinced the England team's male counterparts of the validity of the women's game? Sadly not.
On a BBC Rugby Special programme broadcast last month, the England prop Jeff Probyn criticised their appearance and told 1.5m viewers he was not in favour of women playing from any point of view.
The women's First Division leaders, Richmond, invited Probyn to a training session in an attempt to change his mind. After two and a half hours in the mud and rain, Probyn said: ``I still don't think they should play. Girls with cauliflower ears aren't attractive and the risk of lower-abdomen injury can't be good for them in terms of having babies.''
In fact, there was a distinct lack of cauliflower ears among the women on the field but if, as Probyn believes, looks are important perhaps he should take a look in the mirror.
Source Citation
"Fouroux told to send in the clowns; Inside Track." Sunday Times [London, England] 13 Nov. 1994
On a BBC Rugby Special programme broadcast last month, the England prop Jeff Probyn criticised their appearance and told 1.5m viewers he was not in favour of women playing from any point of view.
The women's First Division leaders, Richmond, invited Probyn to a training session in an attempt to change his mind. After two and a half hours in the mud and rain, Probyn said: ``I still don't think they should play. Girls with cauliflower ears aren't attractive and the risk of lower-abdomen injury can't be good for them in terms of having babies.''
In fact, there was a distinct lack of cauliflower ears among the women on the field but if, as Probyn believes, looks are important perhaps he should take a look in the mirror.
Source Citation
"Fouroux told to send in the clowns; Inside Track." Sunday Times [London, England] 13 Nov. 1994
Sunday, 24 November 1991
Pregnancy in women's rugby
Simon Barnes
Women's rugby is clearly the game of the 21st Century. It has, its exponents are always delighted to point out, many differences to the men's game. One of these is that among the ranks of the first division side, Clifton WRFC, one lock and three backs are pregnant. The WRFU operates an insurance policy that is invalidated by pregnancy.
Copyright (C) The Times, 1991
Source Citation
"Women's rugby; Rugby Union." Times [London, England] 23 Nov. 1991
Women's rugby is clearly the game of the 21st Century. It has, its exponents are always delighted to point out, many differences to the men's game. One of these is that among the ranks of the first division side, Clifton WRFC, one lock and three backs are pregnant. The WRFU operates an insurance policy that is invalidated by pregnancy.
Copyright (C) The Times, 1991
Source Citation
"Women's rugby; Rugby Union." Times [London, England] 23 Nov. 1991
Thursday, 11 April 1991
World Cup: quarter finals and future development
David Hands, Rugby Correspondent
WHATEVER the success of the inaugural women's World Cup being played in Wales this week, their administrators are already looking ahead. A meeting in Cardiff has agreed in principle to a second tournament in 1994, and has invited proposals for the formation of an international women's rugby organisation.
The better-known International Rugby Football Board was unable to accept an invitation to the meeting but will have a second opportunity when the women convene in Madrid this summer, to try and establish the framework of the new body and evaluate the success of their first World Cup.
The organisers are hopeful of crowds of at least 6,000 at tomorrow's semi-finals in Cardiff, and Sunday's final at the same venue. They require that number to cover the tournament costs of Pounds 30,000 and have still to find some £4,000 to cover the cost of accommodation for the Soviet team, though rather than allow the individual organisers to stand liable for that sum, the men's game would surely be in a position to help.
Meanwhile, on the field New Zealand made their way to the semi-finals by beating Wales 24-6 at Flannharan yesterday.
Several hundred of the old mining village's inhabitants urged on the national side but, in a reversal of male traditions, New Zealand's backs outweighed the strengths of the Welsh forwards.
England and France are already through to the other semi-final.
RESULTS: Quarter-finals: New Zealand 24, Wales 6 (Scorers: Wales: Penalties: A Bennett (2). New Zealand: Tries: L Brett (3), A Richards, A Ford. Conversions: D Chase (2); United States 46, Soviet Union 0. Pool 2: Japan 0, Sweden 20. Pool 4: Spain 13, Italy 7.
Copyright (C) The Times, 1991
Source Citation
"Women's game is looking to the future; Rugby Union." Times [London, England] 11 Apr. 1991
WHATEVER the success of the inaugural women's World Cup being played in Wales this week, their administrators are already looking ahead. A meeting in Cardiff has agreed in principle to a second tournament in 1994, and has invited proposals for the formation of an international women's rugby organisation.
The better-known International Rugby Football Board was unable to accept an invitation to the meeting but will have a second opportunity when the women convene in Madrid this summer, to try and establish the framework of the new body and evaluate the success of their first World Cup.
The organisers are hopeful of crowds of at least 6,000 at tomorrow's semi-finals in Cardiff, and Sunday's final at the same venue. They require that number to cover the tournament costs of Pounds 30,000 and have still to find some £4,000 to cover the cost of accommodation for the Soviet team, though rather than allow the individual organisers to stand liable for that sum, the men's game would surely be in a position to help.
Meanwhile, on the field New Zealand made their way to the semi-finals by beating Wales 24-6 at Flannharan yesterday.
Several hundred of the old mining village's inhabitants urged on the national side but, in a reversal of male traditions, New Zealand's backs outweighed the strengths of the Welsh forwards.
England and France are already through to the other semi-final.
RESULTS: Quarter-finals: New Zealand 24, Wales 6 (Scorers: Wales: Penalties: A Bennett (2). New Zealand: Tries: L Brett (3), A Richards, A Ford. Conversions: D Chase (2); United States 46, Soviet Union 0. Pool 2: Japan 0, Sweden 20. Pool 4: Spain 13, Italy 7.
Copyright (C) The Times, 1991
Source Citation
"Women's game is looking to the future; Rugby Union." Times [London, England] 11 Apr. 1991
Saturday, 26 September 1987
Sweet fifteen.
SIMON BARNES
As the new rugby season gets into its stride, one of the quietest revolutions in sport continues. We all know about the meteoric rise of American football as a participant sport in Britain - but women's rugby has been growing just as quickly. At the end of the 1985 season there were 12 clubs; now there are 52, in two divisions. Some put up two teams a week, and a few, like Richmond, 'we are just as committed as the men. When we make a tackle, we mean it. But our game is less violent.' The women's game is mostly about running, and kicking is a decided weakness. 'Girls are not brought up to kick from the age of four,' said Miss Watkins, 'but we're getting there.' And the men's attitude? 'Naturally a lot of them are pretty suspicious of us but each club has enough people who are truly sympathetic and who make it work.' Copyright (C) The Times, 1987
Source Citation
"Sporting Diary: Sweet fifteen." Times [London, England] 26 Sept. 1987
As the new rugby season gets into its stride, one of the quietest revolutions in sport continues. We all know about the meteoric rise of American football as a participant sport in Britain - but women's rugby has been growing just as quickly. At the end of the 1985 season there were 12 clubs; now there are 52, in two divisions. Some put up two teams a week, and a few, like Richmond, 'we are just as committed as the men. When we make a tackle, we mean it. But our game is less violent.' The women's game is mostly about running, and kicking is a decided weakness. 'Girls are not brought up to kick from the age of four,' said Miss Watkins, 'but we're getting there.' And the men's attitude? 'Naturally a lot of them are pretty suspicious of us but each club has enough people who are truly sympathetic and who make it work.' Copyright (C) The Times, 1987
Source Citation
"Sporting Diary: Sweet fifteen." Times [London, England] 26 Sept. 1987
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