Women's rugby league
 | This article relies too much on references to primary sources. (June 2011) |
| Highest governing body | Rugby League International Federation |
|---|---|
| Nicknames | Rugger, Footy, The Greatest Game of All |
| Characteristics | |
| Contact | Full Contact |
| Team members | Thirteen |
| Mixed gender | Single |
| Type | Team sport, Outdoor |
| Equipment | Rugby ball |
| Venue | Rugby league playing field |
Women's Rugby League is the female-only version of the game rugby league football. There are currently clubs for female-only participation running in Australia, Great Britain, and New Zealand which are overseen by the various individual organisations of those separate countries and internationally by the Women & Girls Rugby League.
At international level Australia, France, England and New Zealand compete on a regular basis with a Women's Rugby League World Cup held at a regular interval after first being established in 2000.
Governing Bodies[]
Women's & Girls Rugby League[]
The Women & Girls Rugby League is the international governing body of women's rugby league and was established in 2000 in conjunction with the first Women's Rugby League World Cup.
The organisation currently oversees the running of the international game for women's rugby league and helps organize rugby league domestically in several countries.
Australian Women's Rugby League[]
The Australian Women's Rugby League is the governing body of female rugby league in Australia and other parts of Oceania and was established in 1993. It currently falls under the Australian Rugby League which oversees its running and management but it took the association five years to be recognized by the ARL.
The AWRL is run at state level by its own governing organisations in the Queensland Women's Rugby League, New South Wales Women's Rugby League, Canberra Women's Rugby League and the Western Australian Women's Rugby League. The main women's competitions in Australia are the National Rugby League Women's Premiership, Sydney Metropolitan Women's Rugby League and the Brisbane and District Women's Rugby League.
At international level the Australian Women's side is commonly referred to as the Australian Jillaroos.
Rugby Football League[]
The RFL Women's Rugby League is the governing body of female rugby league in the United Kingdom; although some activity is run by the independent Women's Amateur Rugby League Association, originally established in 1985. With summer rugby becoming increasingly popular, the appeal of WARLA has waned, with the RFL running the largest women's rugby league competition in the world.
At the beginning of the 2006 season there were between thirty and forty female only rugby league clubs running in England not including clubs that have teams of both sexes.[1] The majority of these clubs are located in Lancashire and Yorkshire.
The RFL Women's Rugby League is a competition for female rugby league teams. The Women's Super League began in 2017 as the elite women's rugby league competition in the United Kingdom.
At international level the Women's England side is commonly referred to as the Great Britain Lionesses In 2006, the RFL announced that after the 2007 All Golds Tour the Great Britain team would no longer compete on a regular basis, and that players would be able to represent England, Wales and Scotland at Test level. It is planned that the Great Britain team will come together in future only for occasional tours.
New Zealand Rugby League[]
Women's rugby league in New Zealand is controlled by the New Zealand Rugby League. The national side is called the Kiwi Ferns. The NZRL Women's National Tournament is a competition for female rugby league teams. Women have been playing rugby in New Zealand since the 19th century.[2]
Australian active competitions[]
Each state has their own games and competitions.
One of the most anticipated games on a national level is the State of Origin. This series is played by Queensland and New South Wales. The series only consists of three matches. Each match is played at a different ground, including the ANZ Stadium in Sydney and the Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane. The team who wins two of the three games wins the State of Origin cup.
International[]
The following is a list of nations that compete internationally in women's rugby league on a regular basis.
| Nation | Moniker | International debut | RLIF Rank[3] |
|---|---|---|---|
 Argentina |
2018 vs  Brazil |
— | |
 Australia |
Jillaroos | 1995 vs  New Zealand |
1 |
| Brazil |
Amazonas | 2018 vs Argentina |
15 |
 Canada |
Ravens | 2017 vs New Zealand |
6 |
 Cook Islands |
Moana | 2003 vs New Zealand |
12 |
 England |
Lionessess | 2007 vs  France |
3 |
 Fiji |
Bulikula | 1998 vs Australia |
9 |
| France |
late 1990s vs  Great Britain |
5 | |
| Great Britain |
Lionessess | 1996 vs Australia |
— |
 Greece |
2019 vs  Turkey |
16 | |
 Ireland |
2021 vs  Wales |
14 | |
 Italy |
2017 vs  |
8 | |
 |
Lady Reggae Warriors | Yet to play a full international | — |
| |
Junipers | 2017 vs Italy |
17 |
| New Zealand |
Kiwi Ferns | 1995 vs Australia |
2 |
 New Zealand Māori |
Wahine Toa | 1998 vs Great Britain |
— |
 Niue |
2003 vs New Zealand Māori |
— | |
 Papua New Guinea |
Orchids | 2017 vs England |
4 |
 Samoa |
Fetu Samoa | 2003 vs Great Britain |
11 |
 Serbia |
2019 vs Italy |
7 | |
 Tokelau |
2003 vs Cook Islands |
— | |
| Turkey |
2019 vs France |
10 | |
 Tonga |
Hakula Tonga | 2003 vs Samoa |
— |
 United States |
Yet to play a full international | — | |
| Wales |
2021 vs England |
13 |
The following played tour, nines or other international matches prior to making a Test or World Cup debut.
| Nation | Moniker | Match debut | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canada |
Ravens | 2017 vs  Corrimal Cougars |
Tour Match |
| Great Britain |
Lionessess | 1996 vs  Sydney Select XIII |
Tour Match |
| |
Lady Reggae Warriors | 2019 vs  Ontario |
Nines Tournament |
| New Zealand |
Kiwi Ferns | 1995 vs  NSW Select XIII |
Tour Match |
| Papua New Guinea |
Orchids | 2017 vs  Australian XIII |
Prime Minister's XIII warm-up |
| Wales |
2019 vs England Lions |
vs Second Team |
Women's Rugby League World Cup[]
The Women's Rugby League World Cup was first held in Great Britain during 2000 to coincide with men's Rugby League World Cup with Australia, Great Britain and New Zealand competing.
The World Cup is played every 4 years. The next World Cup will be held in November 2021 in England and will be played alongside Men's and Wheelchair tournaments.[4] In the 2013 World Cup, the Australian Jillaroos’ won the cup breaking New Zealand’s 13 year winning streak.[5] Australia again beat New Zealand in the 2017 World Cup Final.[6]
See also[]
References[]
- ^ "Women's rugby league". news.bbc.co.uk. 7 September 2005. Retrieved 31 October 2017.
- ^ "History". www.communityrugby.co.nz. Retrieved 2019-11-03.
- ^ "World Rankings - Women". IRL. 10 Dec 2021. Retrieved 11 Dec 2021.
- ^ "Rugby League Women's World Cup England 2021". RLWC2021. 2021. Retrieved 22 Apr 2021.
- ^ "Jillaroos win Women's World Cup". NRL.com. 2013-06-15. Retrieved 2016-06-20.
- ^ "Kangaroos take title as Generation Next arrives in style". NRL. 19 Oct 2019. Retrieved 10 Oct 2010.
External links[]
- Women's rugby league
- Variations of rugby league
- Rugby League pages needing cleanup