from Scrumqueens:

The year following the Women’s Rugby World Cup is normally fairly quiet as teams regroup and rebuild, and this year has been no different.

Just 54 test matches were played in 2011, making it the quietest year for women’s test rugby since 2005.

However, fears that the lure of Olympic rugby would mean that countries would start to move away from the long form of the game towards Sevens have so far proven groundless. 32 nations played test rugby during the year, and the game continued to grow and expand into new territories. Three nations making their test match debuts – Switzerland, Laos and the Philippines – and several others, including China, Thailand and Uzbekistan, returned to fifteen-aside rugby after a break of several years.

By far and away the busiest team was England, to the extent that they were involved nearly a quarter of all the tests played in the year – 13 in all, winning 11, drawing one, and losing only to France when a young and largely experimental team spent rain-swept week in Provence as part of England’s preparations for the visit of world champions New Zealand. It was a schedule that rivalled professional men’s national teams and is all the more impressive when the six “unofficial” and “A” team internationals, plus a further seven U20 tests, are added to the equation.

Over the year England played every other team in the world’s top ten (with the exception of Australia) – while the U20 team played (and beat) every other U20 team in the world. They again dominated the Six Nations, winning their 11th Grand Slam and sixth successive title, running in 68 points against Italy and record-breaking 89 against Scotland, before crossing the Atlantic for the third Nations Cup.

Though here England were also unbeaten, the competition proved to be a much more testing affair than the Six Nations. In the pool games only an injury time try saved them from defeat to the USA, after which hosts Canada also pushed England far closer than any European opposition had managed. And while England went on to win the final fairly comfortably, Canada still managed to score 19 points – more points than any full-strength England team had conceded since the 2006 World Cup Final.

England’s A team also had success, winning an incredibly exciting FIRA European Championship, superbly organised in Corunna by Spain, who reached the final and lead England until 12 minutes from time before going down by only 5-3. Spain’s 15-a-side team can often be over-shadowed by the success of their Sevens squad, by it is worth noting that England were the only team to beat Spain in a year where the “The Lions” defeated a full-strength Scotland in January, and then beat a near full-strength French XV in a thrilling and emotional FIRA afternoon in front of a packed crowd at the University of Coruña.

That Spanish defeat was the lowest point of the year for France as they rebuilt after an ultimately disappointing World Cup. After England they were the busiest nation in world rugby, with seven tests and four A internationals, plus one U20 international. At times they could be sublimely brilliant – most especially in their opening Six Nations game against Scotland – and overall they reaffirmed their place as Europe’s number two rugby nation. However they showed some fragility against Ireland and badly missed the boot of Aurélie Bailon throughout most of the year. However, a highly successful Autumn series, with wins over England and Italy, has clearly boosted the confidence of the French team and could be the springboard for a much closer Six Nations in 2012.

Scotland and Italy were the only other “major” European nations to play test rugby outside of the Six Nations. The two teams overall had similar records and again occupied the bottom third of the Six Nations table, but Italy continued to grow and develop as a team and had one of their best years ever, with growing enthusiasm on and off the field – a test match in Italy is now an experience that every team will be looking forward to as Italian host communities took hospitality to new heights in 2011.

Unfortunately the only thing that seems to grow for Scotland is gap between them and the rest of the Six Nations. It may be a rebuilding time, but this was still their worst season ever, with defeats by record margins to Spain, France, Wales, England and Italy. They did finish the year with a win – against a young Dutch team largely lacking their Sevens professionals – but unless dramatic improvements are made Scotland could struggle to qualify for the World Cup in 2014.

However, in their favour the SRU are doing all they can with limited resources. They have formed an A team and a U20 side, and do organise extra games. The same cannot be said for Ireland and Wales who continue to put in excellent Six Nations performances despite the lack of development opportunities. That the Irish in particular could again finish third in the Six Nations despite barely seeing each other outside of the championship is truly remarkable – one if left to wonder what they could achieve if they were given a fraction of the support that their opponents receive.

Or even the levels of support that South Africa are starting to be given. Outside of Europe and North America no Union gives more support to its women’s team than the SARU. And it does not come cheap – as no-one seems to wish to visit them, the South Africans have to travel overseas for all of their international rugby – but their efforts finally bore fruit in August when the world 10th ranked side memorably beat a USA side (5th in the world) that had come within four points of England only a week before. If the SARU continues with this level of support, a far higher position in 2014 can be assured.

Elsewhere in the world test rugby continued in isolated islands of activity. The Caribbean championship was again won by Trinidad, who now have one of the best playing records in the history of the women’s game (11 wins in 13 tests) – mainly because they never have an opportunity to play anyone outside the Caribbean.

Kenya and Uganda also continue to play in a world of their own, though this year it was a world riven with controversy when both sides claimed to have won the annual Elgon Cup tournament after Uganda first cancelled and then (at the last minute) reinstated the second leg of the competition, but not after the Kenyans had been presented with the prize after the first leg because of that cancellation. The result was confusion compounded by an ugly and ill-tempered war of words with no real resolution. Hopefully, despite this, the tournament (funding permitted) should go ahead in 2012 – and most probably with a new sponsor.

Similarly isolated, Asian rugby had a fairly quiet year. There was no senior continental championship and regional super-power Kazakhstan could manage only one test, a relatively easy win over neighbours Uzbekistan, while Japan beat Hong Kong, who in turn defeated Singapore. However, the year did end with the re-emergence of a sleeping giant as a Chinese 15-a-side team who took the field for the first time for four years, winning a continental “Division II” title with some ease. Given a fair wind and continued support China could yet threaten Kazakhstan’s place in the 2014 World Cup.

Nonetheless the climax of the test match year came right at the end, with the reappearance of New Zealand for the first time since the World Cup. Their loss in the series against England shows that the power in world rugby could be shifting – it may no longer be possible for the Black Ferns to rely almost entirely on the strength and competitiveness of their domestic game to remain at the top of world rugby.

That series will be repeated next year and will undoubtedly be the highlight of the 2012. Next year will also see the first qualification games for the 2014 World Cup in Europe, and will certainly be the last opportunity for most of the rest of the world to complete their experimentation and rebuilding. As usual what else the year will bring remains something of a mystery, though history shows that it should be even busier than this year. A major highlight will definitely be the quadrennial European Championship in May, but will we also see an Asian “Division I” tournament, or perhaps the reappearance of Australia? If 2011 was a memorable year, 2012 has the potential to be even better.

See here for a full review of the 7s game this year.

Test playing nations in 2011:

England (13 tests); France (7); Scotland (7); Italy (6); Ireland (5); Wales (5); Canada (4); South Africa (4); United States (4); China (3); Spain (3); Trinidad and Tobago (3); Jamaica (3); Thailand (3); Cayman Islands (3); Netherlands (3); Philippines (3); Sweden (3); New Zealand (3); Caribbean Select XV (3); Finland (3); Laos (3); Russia (2); Hong Kong (2); Kenya (2); Uganda (2); Japan (1); Kazakhstan (1); Switzerland (1); Thailand (1); Belgium (1); Singapore (1); Uzbekistan (1)

Tournament winners:

Six Nations: England
FIRA European Championship: England A
NACRA Caribbean Championship: Trinidad & Tobago
Nations Cup: England
Asian Championship (Div II): China

Wendy Young

Editor of Your Scrumhalf Connection. Passionate Rugger since 2001.

Website - More Posts

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It seems like women are getting tired of being considered second class athletes, first the WCSC letter to USA Rugby asking for gender equity…the UK is struggling with their own issues… We can’t ignore that these issues are worldwide and affect all female athletes.

from theguardian:

Lady Grey-Thompson, the 11-time Paralympic champion, says: 'We have a huge number of home Olympic and Paralympic medallists who are women. But the media coverage is abysmal.' Photograph: Nick Potts/PA

A group of leading British sportswomen has called for the “abysmal” media coverage of women’s sports to be addressed after the uproar over the male-only shortlist for the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award.

Speaking at the launch of an event aimed at boosting the profile of women in sport, the 11-time Paralympic champion Tanni Grey-Thompsonsaid: “We have a huge number of home Olympic and Paralympic medallists who are women. But the media coverage is abysmal, the funding is abysmal and not enough girls are getting involved.”

She said that far more needed to be done, adding: “It’s a really positive thing to admit that we haven’t cracked the women in sports issue.”

Last month, the BBC’s failure to include any women on its shortlist for the award provoked criticism from a group of MPs who accused it of “ignoring women’s achievements”.

More than a dozen female athletes met MPs in parliament on Wednesday to promote Us Girls – a lottery-funded programme which aims to give young women from disadvantaged areas sporting opportunities and the chance to meet female sports stars.

Barbara Keeley, the Labour MP for Worsley and Eccles South, said that young women needed more role models.

“In the runup to the Olympics the number of women doing sport is falling,” she said. “This is a real concern. Sport affects your fitness, health and how you feel about yourself.”

Tracey Crouch, the Conservative MP for Chatham and Aylesford – and an FA-qualified coach who manages her local girls’ football team – will on Thursday ask David Cameron how he plans to promote women’s sports. “It’s about boosting women’s profiles because that’s the reason the shortlist failed,” she said.

Figures released last week by Sport England, which aims to get more people involved in sport, show the number of women participating in sport at least three times a week has decreased over the past year, while male participation has increased.

Jennie Price, Sport England’s chief executive, said more thought needed to be given to how sport was reported in the media. “Sport is seen through a male lens and coverage is given to mainstream male sports like football,” she said. “But these aren’t always the ones that women are interested in.”

The England and Great Britain international hockey player Beth Storrysaid: “It’s definitely not an even playing field when it comes to publicity. Women in the US receive so much more coverage. We need to get more girls involved. Playing has changed my life and given me such confidence.”

Her sentiments were echoed by Kylie Grimes, a Great Britain wheelchair rugby athlete. “There’s lots of girls out there who would like to get involved but are intimidated or think its not for them,” she said. “A lot rests on the profile of sports being played [and] hopefully the Olympics will improve this.”

Katie-Jemima Yeats-Brown, a 16-year-old Olympic judo hopeful from Tonbridge, said the BBC controversy had served only to strengthen her resolve: “I was disappointed by the shortlist, but it just motivates me even more because now I have something to prove.”

Wendy Young

Editor of Your Scrumhalf Connection. Passionate Rugger since 2001.

Website - More Posts

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YSC received permission to publish this letter from Sue Parker, on behalf of the USA Rugby Women’s Collegiate Strategic Committee.

Join the movement! We’ve created a Facebook page for this issue, join today!

USA Rugby WCSC letter to BOD 120911 [PDF]

I’m sure I don’t have to express to you how important these issues are, not only is this a general disregard for women’s rugby across the board, but it is also an injustice for future rugby players. I urge you to pass on your support for gender equity to USA Rugby; the contacts that you can reach out to are below.

Also, please pass this on by using Facebook, Twitter (if you Tweet, please use hash tags #genderequity, #usarugby &  #wrugby, so we can track) etc.

Join the movement! We’ve created a Facebook page for this issue, join today! 

Contacts

USA Rugby Board
Kevin Roberts, Chairman of the Board - kroberts@usarugby.org
Bob Latham, Vice Chairman of the Board - blatham@usarugby.org
Bill Middleton, Director - bmiddleton@usarugby.org
Tom Wacker, Director - twacker@usarugby.org
Francois Viljoen, International Athlete - fviljoen@usarugby.org
Rob King, Director - rking@usarugby.org
Peter Seccia, Director - pseccia@usarugby.org
Julia McCoy, Congress Representative - jmccoy@usarugby.org
Christy Ringgenberg, International Athlete - cringgenberg@usarugby.org

USA Rugby CEO
Nigel Melville, Chief Executive Officer & President of Rugby Operations - nmelville@usarugby.org

NCAA Committee
*Some are duplicate members from the USA Rugby Board
Nigel Melville, Julie McCoy (Chair), Peter Seccia (Board member), Christy Ringgenberg (Board Member), Sue Parker (WCSC chair)

Ellen Owens, Congress member, WCSC member - eowens@usarugby.org
MaryBeth Mathews, WCSC co-chair - mmathews@bowdoin.edu
Tam Brackenridge - tamb@sunwave.net

Wendy Young

Editor of Your Scrumhalf Connection. Passionate Rugger since 2001.

Website - More Posts

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from USA Rugby:

• A USA Rugby and USOC partnership will allow USA Rugby to provide 23 rugby sevens athletes (15 men, 8 women) with fulltime training contracts in January 2012
• The 23 athletes will live near and have fulltime access to the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, Calif.
• Both the men’s and women’s sevens teams will compete in more international tournaments in 2012
• There will be expanded training opportunities for USA Rugby’s All-Americans at the Olympic Training Center

BOULDER, Colo. — USA Rugby is thrilled to announce an exciting development for rugby in the United States. Starting in January 2012, a partnership between the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) and USA Rugby will allow 23 rugby sevens athletes to receive fulltime training contracts at the Olympic Training Center (OTC) in Chula Vista, Calif.Fifteen men and eight women will receive contracts which will provide monthly stipends, meals, world-class training facilities, and high-performance support services at the OTC, marking a crucial step on rugby’s journey to the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

In October 2009, the International Olympic Committee announced that rugby sevens would be included in the 2016 and 2020 Olympic Games, a massive development for the sport of rugby all over the world, but particularly in a country like the USA that has such a strong Olympic tradition.“As we prepare as a nation for Rio 2016, making our men’s and women’s sevens teams fulltime is a crucial step for our sport,” said USA Rugby CEO, Nigel Melville.

“There are so many advantages to living and training in a high-performance environment year round – fulltime coaches, trainers, dieticians, sports psychologists, and so on – it really is necessary if the USA are to be on the rugby podium in 2016.”

The athletes will live off-site but nearby the OTC with fulltime access to training and recovery facilities, high-performance specialists, and of course, coaches.

The USA Men’s and Women’s Sevens teams will also take part in more international competitions as part of the USOC and USA Rugby partnership, allowing the USA to more regularly engage the best teams in the world.

The USA Men's Sevens team received a bronze medal at the 2011 Pan American Games in October. Pictured from left to right: Folau Niua, Nu'u Punimata, Mark Bokhoven. Credit: Martin Seras Lima

In the 2011-2012 season, the Men’s Eagle Sevens team will play in 11 tournaments. The team has already claimed a bronze medal for Team USA at the 2011 Pan American Games in October. Their remaining fixtures include the North America Caribbean Rugby Association (NACRA) Sevens and the nine-tournament HSBC Sevens World Series.

The NACRA Sevens, to be held in the fall of 2012, will serve as a Rugby World Cup Sevens 2013qualifier for the men’s team.

The USA Women's Eagle Sevens team in training before their season opener in Dubai. Along with eight fulltime contracts, the team will see an expanded international tournament schedule in 2012. Pictured from left to right: Corey Fredericks, Katie Dowty, and Emilie Bydwell. Credit: USA Rugby

The Women’s Eagle Sevens team will compete in five tournaments in the 2011-2012 Season as part of the IRB Women’s Sevens Challenge Cup and the Women’s NACRA Sevens. Because of their success at the 2009 Women’s Rugby World Cup Sevens (the USA made it to the Cup Semifinals), the team has automatically qualified for the 2013 tournament.

The squad will also compete in the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto, where women’s rugby will make its Team USA debut.“The USOC is a fantastic partner to have on our journey to 2016. They have been very supportive of our national teams and are also invested in developing American rugby athletes for 2016 and beyond,” Melville added.

The sport of rugby has grown drastically in the United States over the last six years. In 2005, USA Rugby had about 62,000 members and it recently tallied over 98,000 in 2011. The inclusion of rugby sevens in the Olympics has provided momentum for the sport at all levels.

While the contracted players will enjoy the excellent OTC facilities year round, high-performance training opportunities will also be extended to USA Rugby’s All-American athletes at the high school, under-20, and college levels, an added benefit to rugby’s new status with the USOC.

Wendy Young

Editor of Your Scrumhalf Connection. Passionate Rugger since 2001.

Website - More Posts

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from IRB.com:

Australia celebrate becoming the first ever RWC Sevens women's champions

The International Rugby Board is set to launch the IRB Women’s Rugby Plan, an exciting new strategic vision to drive the direction, development and growth of one of the world’s fastest growing sports throughout the next decade.

The IRB Women’s Rugby Plan will harness the collaborative commitment from the IRB and its Member Unions to optimise the sport’s Olympic Games inclusion and provide a sustainable blueprint for participation to grow across all continents beyond the 200,000 registered players currently regularly competing.

The first programme of its kind, the Plan will focus on delivering three key goals to enhance the position of Women’s Rugby as one of the world’s fastest-growing team sports and an accessible sport for all ages and abilities:

- Sustainably increase global participation
- Provide greater competition opportunities on the world stage in Sevens and Fifteens
- Optimise the Olympic Games opportunity and deliver an exceptional tournament at Rio 2016

IRB Chairman Bernard Lapasset said: “These are exciting times for Rugby around the world. We have witnessed an 18% growth in participation across the sport since Rugby World Cup 2007 and Olympic Games inclusion has provided a fantastic opportunity for Rugby to flourish in nations that would not usually be associated with the sport. Women’s Rugby has been at the very heart of that revolution.”

“Women’s Rugby is currently on a high. Women’s Rugby World Cup Sevens 2009 firmly placed it on the global map, demonstrating the sheer universality and appetite for the Game, while Women’s Rugby World Cup 2010 underpinned the tremendous potential for the Women’s Game to attract new audiences and fans, while delivering exceptional competition.”

“The IRB and our Member Unions are committed to ensuring greater opportunities at elite and community level and while investment and targeted development programmes have led to a phenomenal increase in participation in recent years, we now have the foundation to maximise that potential and work together in line with the clear focus provided by the Plan to deliver our ambitious targets for the sport.”

The Plan coincides with an exciting period on the international stage which includes Women’s Rugby World Cup Sevens 2013 in Moscow, Women’s Rugby World Cup 2014 in France and the Olympic Games Rugby Sevens competitions in 2016 and 2020.

Complementing the IRB Strategic Plan launched last year, the IRB Women’s Rugby Plan has at its heart the aim to ‘increase female participation and the standard of Women’s Rugby globally’.

IRB Women’s Development Manager Susan Carty said: “The IRB Women’s Rugby Plan has been developed following a root and branch review of the Women’s Game involving all our Member Unions and I would like to thank them for their support of this important process. Under the auspices of the Women’s Rugby Working Group, Union feedback and consultation has delivered the priorities that will guide the development of the sport through what is a period full of opportunities.”

“These priorities will be underpinned by developing a global competition model, raising the profile and commercial value of Women’s Rugby, providing strong and effective leadership and promoting Women’s Rugby in all its forms. In addition, we will focus resources with Member Unions to provide opportunities for more young girls to become more involved in the Game.”

Wendy Young

Editor of Your Scrumhalf Connection. Passionate Rugger since 2001.

Website - More Posts

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I have recently started contributing to the UK blog Talking Rugby Union. They were looking for a women’s perspective and women’s coverage so I was happy to contribute. Make sure to check their site out!

from Talking Rugby Union:

For my first post with Talking Rugby Union I thought I would give a quick overview of Women’s Rugby in the US and beyond. But first a quick introduction to me!

My name is Wendy Young and I have been chronicling women’s rugby in the US since 2006. In the last few years I have jumped into the big pool of International Women’s Rugby as well. My websiteYour Scrumhalf Connection was created in 2006 because I wanted to give back to the sport that has given me so much. As for me personally, I currently play scrumhalf for the Austin Valkyries in Austin, TX. I started  my rugby career at the University of Oklahoma in 2001, but moved to Austin in 2006. I have played on several regional selectside teams and was asked to help coach the West U23 team in 2008 and have been with them ever since. I was also honored to be a member of the USA Women’s National Team pool from 2006-2008. In 2008 I was also certified as a rugby referee in the Texas Rugby Union. I enjoy all aspects of the game and love having my foot in administration, reffing, coaching and especially playing!

Women’s Rugby across the world is experiencing major growth and I believe that is a reflection of the availability of rugby at every level. In the US we have seen a major increase in rugby on television and available on the Internet. Along with the inclusion of 7s rugby in the Olympics I believe we will continue to see an expansive growth over the next couple of years. In 2010 the number of participants in rugby in America cracked a million for the first time — 1,130,000, up from 617,000 in 2007. While rugby in general is still in its infancy stages in the US, women’s rugby is one of the fastest growing sports in the world.

Women’s Rugby World Cup (7s and 15s) / Olympics
In 2010  the WRWC was held in London, England and the number of spectators, participants and fans was astounding. While the finalists of the Women’s Rugby World Cup final were the same as the last 3 tournaments, lots of other aspects of the tournament were new and fresh. For the first time, over 13 matches were shown live on Sky Sports and most matches were available to watch on-line.

Looking forward to the 2013 Women’s 7s Rugby World Cup and the 2016 Olympics several nations have changed their strategy for women’s rugby. Canada, England and the US have already started selections for these upcoming events. Canada and England even allow their players stipends and additional funding…thats as close to “professional rugby” as we have seen for women yet. I’ve said it before and I will say it again, whomever funds their programs NOW will be standing on that awards podium come 2013 and 2016.

To read the rest, go to Talking Rugby Union. Oh and I would your comments on the article!

Wendy Young

Editor of Your Scrumhalf Connection. Passionate Rugger since 2001.

Website - More Posts

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Monty Nyriws

One of the mini-highlights I had at the Hong Kong 7s tournament was meeting one of the members of the Chinese 7s team. I happened to be sitting right behind her during one of the Sunday games, so I introduced myself. Her name is Guan Qi Shi. She wears jersey #9 and she’s the team’s high scorer as well! She spoke almost no English, but I was with Kevin Swiryn’s cousin Jeff, who lives in China and is fluent in Chinese, so he acted as my interpreter.

Here she is with translator and cousin Jeff Swiryn. BTW, that's Lauren Shaughnessy behind right...

She told me that the Chinese women’s 7s team was made up of all college students. She said they get paid 1,000 Yuan per month to play rugby. That’s about $146, which is pretty good spending change in China. Actually, Jeff said that she probably gets a lot more. It’s customary in China to not boast, so they typically understate things like salary.

She had been to the Las Vegas 7s tournament in Feb. I asked her how she liked the Las Vegas 7s and the USA in general. I also asked her if they were disappointed that the US women’s 7s team did not come to Hong Kong. She responded with very diplomatic answers, which is politically correct in China, but her expressions said more than her words.

Wendy Young

Editor of Your Scrumhalf Connection. Passionate Rugger since 2001.

Website - More Posts

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from IRB:

Australia won last year's Hong Kong women's title, beating China in the final.

The 12 teams set to participate in the Cable & Wireless Hong Kong Women’s Rugby Sevens have been announced, with Malaysia set to make their debut in Women’s Sevens.

This year’s Hong Kong Women’s Rugby Sevens will be the 13th edition of the tournament, which has grown into one of the top annual fixtures in women’s rugby.

Last year Australia, who had earlier won the inaugural Women’s Rugby World Cup in Sevens, beat China 24-7 to clinch the title.

This year’s women’s event will be held at the Hong Kong Football Club on Friday 26 March, the day the men’s competition starts, and the Cup final will be played at 7.04pm in the Hong Kong Stadium during a break in play at the main Cathay Pacific/Credit Suisse Hong Kong Sevens.

Eight of the 12 sides come from the Asian region, while representation from New Zealand, Australia, Papua New Guinea and South Africa highlights the tournament’s enduring appeal, and the growth of women’s rugby, which is set to enjoy its four-yearly Rugby World Cup tournament in England later this year.

Of the Asian sides present, China are arguably the most celebrated. The Chinese took the Bowl trophy at last year’s Rugby World Cup Sevens in Dubai and more recently beat the United States at the Women’s Eagles’ home invitational tournament in Las Vegas.

Of Asia’s established women’s rugby nations, Kazakhstan is arguably the most prominent and will compete in London in August and September as the region’s sole direct entry into the Women’s Rugby World Cup.

Other Asian teams include the Arabian Gulf, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and hosts Hong Kong, while the national team of Papua New Guinea rounds off the roster of full representative national squads.

In addition, three of the world’s premier women’s club sides are also taking part, including five-time Cup champions Aotearoa Maori from New Zealand. The Aussie Amazons from Australia and Pretoria University’s Tuks from South Africa complete the competitive field.

Participating teams:
Arabian Gulf (AGRFU) – Pool A
Aussie Amazons – Pool A
China – Pool B
Hong Kong – Pool C
Japan – Pool C
Kazakhstan – Pool D
Malaysia – Pool B
NZ Aotearoa Maori – Pool D
Papau New Guinea – Pool B
South Africa Tuks – Pool D
Singapore – Pool C
Thailand – Pool C

Why isn’t USA on the list? Check out this blog here for more details.

UPDATE 3/26: I have some of the scores and I am looking for the others. If you know any, send them to wendy@scrumhalfconnection.com.

Rosters

Arabian Gulf
Bridie Johnson Dubai Hurricanes (Captain)
Sandra Ahrendt Kuwait Nomads
Sorrell Bootham Abu Dhabi Harlequins
Danielle Love Bahrain RFC
Shannon Lowe Toa Dubai
Jenny Matheson Abu Dhabi Harlequins
Holly Myers Dubai Hurricanes
Julie Smith Dubai Hurricanes
Adrienne Speedy Toa Dubai
Jennie Thompson Dubai Hurricanes
Estelle Uren Abu Dhabi Harlequins

Japan
Ayaka Suzuki
Mayumi Takahashi
Keiko Kato
Ayako Tanaka
Marie Yamaguchi
Chikami Inoue
Makiko Tomita
Ayumi Okawa
Anri Kawano
Mami Kudo
Rinako Yokoyama
Ikumi Suzuki

Hong Kong
Amy Ni Amelie SEURE
Yi Beiqi Becky UNDERWOOD
Hao-Ting
Chen Shi-Long
Zheng Zhi-Ting
Zheng Jia Ci
Pan Bai Yan
Miss SUM Wai Sum
Huolian Ying Fiona FOXON

Aussie Amazons
Alex Hargreaves
Debby Hodgkinson
Shannon Parry
Rebecca Trethowan
Trisha Brown
Kristy Giteau
Cobie Morgan
Cheryl Soon
Rebecca Tavo
Shontelle Stowers.

Wendy Young

Editor of Your Scrumhalf Connection. Passionate Rugger since 2001.

Website - More Posts

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