THIS International Women’s Day, the Governing Body for rugby in Ulster is marking the 1000th registered player in the youth girls’ game.
With the women and girls’ game continuing to show record growth across adult and youth participation, Ulster Rugby is recognising the year-round work of its clubs and schools this International Women’s Day.
Alongside reaching a milestone figure of 1k girls registered to play in the club game, which is a 19% increase on last season’s participation figure, the Governing Body for the sport is also celebrating a 13% increase in local girls taking part in mini-rugby.
The schools’ game is similarly showing growth with a 10% increase in participation in the 2023/24 season.
Women and Girls’ Development Manager at Ulster Rugby, Mollie Davies, said: “Participation for women and girls in rugby in Ulster is the highest it’s ever been so it’s an exciting time to be involved in the local game.
“We now have a strong pipeline of young girls coming through our player pathway, which will see some go onto represent Ulster and Ireland at the highest level, inspired by our current Senior Women’s team.
“For others, it’s about being active, competitive and enjoying the social aspect of taking part in club or schools’ activity, in a format of the game that bests suits them, which is equally important.”
Chair of the Ulster Rugby Women and Girls’ Committee, Paula Stewart, added: “Following the recent success of the Ulster Senior Women’s players involved in winning the Celtic Challenge, it’s great to see there are young girls set to follow in their footsteps.
“Increasingly women and girls are getting involved in all areas of the game, including as players, coaches, volunteers and committee members, and we look forward to a strong presence at Kingspan Stadium in the upcoming weeks through the likes of the Danske Bank Schools’ Cup final, Ireland Women’s Six Nations game versus Scotland, and Junior Cup final.
“We are committed to growing and investing the game across the province, and it’s encouraging that this hard work is already paying dividends.”
Be a part of the action at Kingspan Stadium on Saturday, April 27 with a day ticket to watch Ireland take on Scotland in the Guinness Women’s Six Nations, followed by the finale of the province’s Women’s Junior Cup. For tickets starting from £10, visit https://www.ticketmaster.ie/guinness-womens-six-nations-ireland-v-belfast-27-04-2024/event/38005F7B92B51F35
