The teams that will make up the first-ever women’s national university rugby sevens series have been announced.
The competition will include a collection of sides coming from all states and territories of the country except for Victoria and Western Australia. New South Wales and Queensland will take up the bulk of the share, with five teams.
Along with young talent, national players for the Australian women’s sevens side will also play in the competition, with the latter spread throughout the teams.
Teams to feature are as follows:
University of Canberra (ACT)
University of Adelaide (SA)
University of Tasmania (TAS)
University of New England (NSW)
Macquarie University (NSW)
Bond University (QLD)
University of Queensland (QLD)
Griffith University (QLD)
National women’s sevens coach Tim Walsh, who coached the side to a gold medal during the 2016 Olympics, says it will have a “huge impact” on the growth of women’s sevens in Australia.
“This series will fall at a time when our contracted squad members will be available to play, which means the up-and-coming talent will have the opportunity to play with world class athletes, which will only improve their skills,” Walsh said.
“Most of our Olympic players didn’t come from a rugby background but with this new pathway available, younger players will have a clear goal and be motivated to strive for selection in these teams to develop their skills at a higher level.”
General manager of high-performance Ben Whitaker believes the competition will be an “exciting step” in the continued development of women’s rugby sevens in Australia.
“With more regular training and more representative-level games available, the next generation of sevens stars will be able to refine their skills and push for selection in the full-time national squad,” Whitaker said.
The competition will begin in August.
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