Over the last month, the Matildas have taken the entire country on a beautiful journey. In a country that is passionate about so many sports, it was quite something to see the whole country unite behind one team and capture the national imagination.
But the Matildas are far greater than this one tournament and what was created this month was a reflection of years of hard work, courage and sacrifice by so many, including former players.
2015 was a pivotal year when the Matildas went on strike to draw attention to their status as athletes; existing in financial insecurity and without appropriate support just to play the sport they loved.
This strike laid the groundwork for the Matildas and Socceroos achieving pay parity in 2019 and increased investment in pathways and facilities for women’s football.
It seems that the courage of the Matildas of old and the Matildas of today has also inspired the next generation of female athletes to use their voices and take advantage of a moment in time that has set a new benchmark for sport.
On Sunday evening, the majority of the Australian Wallaroos, supported by their Super W counterparts released a united statement, criticising Rugby Australia for their lack of care and commitment to women’s rugby.
(Photo by Andrea Cardin – World Rugby/World Rugby via Getty Images)
Many issues were highlighted by the players but really, at the heart of it, is the female players constantly being told how challenging it is to lengthen a Super W season, or provide full-time coaching or full-time contracts because of cost.
Then on the other hand, Rugby Australia manages to find millions of dollars to lure a rugby league player to rugby union and have no doubt moved heaven and earth so Eddie Jones has a full coaching staff for the Rugby World Cup after the resignation of one his coaches a week out.
It’s a tough pill to swallow for the Wallaroos when Rugby Australia chooses to feature wives and girlfriends of the male players on their Instagram account being flown across the country to support their partners and then on the other, seeing the Wallaroos stranded in Canada following a recent Pacific Four competition. I don’t blame Rugby Australia for Air Canada’s issues, but I can’t imagine our male players being stranded at an airport after a crucial campaign.
In response, Rugby Australia released a statement on Monday saying… nothing. It just said more of the same. Rugby Australia are “taking steps towards a fully professional future”’, Rugby Australia “know they have a way to go”, Rugby Australia wants to “‘work together” with their female athletes.
There was no substance in the statement at all. It’s unclear what these targets are or what the timeline might look like.
What is devastating about this is that in a country where sports are increasingly investing in women’s sport (some more than others) rugby union continues to be left behind.
(Photo by Andrea Cardin – World Rugby/World Rugby via Getty Images)
Some have suggested what is rugby union’s loss could be rugby league’s gain; rugby league has already welcomed several Wallaroos into the NRLW including Grace Kemp and Grace Hamilton. But that is unsatisfying for me, especially in a sport like rugby union.
I want to live in a world where women are given the opportunity to play the sports that they love and are supported by their governing bodies to do so, instead of playing a 5-week Super W season with some clubs requiring players to take days off work to train because of how compressed the schedule is.
I can already predict some of the responses to this article.
The Wallaroos can get money when they start to bring in money. The quality is not as good as men’s rugby. And on and on and on…
My response to that, is what responsibility does the governing body shoulder for “bringing in money” for the Wallaroos through sponsorship and promotion of these women through their channels.
What can we reasonably expect in terms of quality when players are living in financial insecurity to play the sport they love?
At a national level, we always see the Wallaroos start slow and the improve exponentially as tournaments continue; no surprise that playing consistent rugby as a team aids their performances.
I want to salute the courage and bravery of these players. Making a statement like this does not come without risk and in my view, the players releasing this statement publicly suggests that they are tired of having the same conversations, tired of feeling like they are considered an afterthought and looking to all of us to help apply pressure to the governing body and support their cause.
Women’s sport is not slowing down. Rugby Australia need to recognise this opportunity and start making steps a lot faster… otherwise they will be left behind along with their athletes.
catcat
Roar Rookie
You either keep up or you go backwards. I watched the Wallaroos smash Japan 34-5 here in Newcastle in 2019. Millie Boyle, Mahalia Murphy and Grace Hamilton all played that day. All 3 are in the NRLW this season. New Zealand beat us 50-0 this year and Japan beat us 12-10 last year. We are hosting the Women's Rugby World cup in 2029 - 6 years to go, you would think doing well in a home cup would be a priority...a recent example of another womens sport might hint at what's possible. I'm not surprised really - when you think back to how popular Rugby was at the Mens' World Cup held here in 2003 and where it is now. Missed opportunities could be the new catch phrase for Rugby Australia as they certainly look like they know how to find them.
RayinSydney
Roar Rookie
So this is just a topical article then?, as opposed to a follow up on previous articles regarding the Wallaroos arguments with RA and the plight of women's rugby in general? If so its just jumping on a bandwagon then.
Anibal Pyro
Roar Rookie
in futbol its very hard to match the powerhouses, as rugby. Here in argentina boys play rugby , basketball, volleyball, tennis, but with his friends plays football. my 3 boys plays rugby union, when they do not have practise, all the afternoons goes to a F5 complex and plays 5 vs 5 football , it´s like going to the park to hang out. Even at my 46 years old, every Tuesday with old teammates go to a F5 to play and then barbecue with beer. Football it´s a religion here, a culture , same in Brazil, how can you macht that base of millions ????
Grem
Roar Rookie
Just read HBF has sold out for the three games and they are now considering moving to Optus.
JD Kiwi
Roar Rookie
Upside means potential increases. Women's rugby is where the growth in player numbers is and the current income from it is negligible. So there's a lot of scope for revenue increases, which is already happening in English women's rugby.
Cannonball
Roar Rookie
Good question. Mismanagement for a couple of decades, cultural change and we all forget that union’s rise in the 90’s coincided with the Murdoch sponsored Superleague takeover move. Once league got their house in order, programming returned to normal.
Danny McGowan
Roar Rookie
It's only proven return if players turn out as good as hoped. Quite a few slip through the gaps
Deano
Roar Rookie
woman cant stop watching reality nonsense, until that stops and they choose to watch womans sports, they will get zero finance , and that isnt a bad thing
Lux Interior
Roar Rookie
And didn't Eddie look stupid in an Akubra. What a metaphor for the Wallabies: We're all hat and no cattle!
Doctordbx
Roar Rookie
Woman's Rugby is on Stan. It's there to watch.
astro
Roar Rookie
Professional sport as a business, was designed for men, by men. The argument that this "could easily be fixed if more people watched Women’s Rugby", is fundamentally flawed for this reason. A case in point from a Victoria University study from last year: 'Male sport makes up 81% of television sports and news coverage, compared to women at just – 7.4%' Pretty hard for Women's Rugby to increase viewership when no one covers it, talks about it or reports on it, wouldn't you say?
Banthman
Roar Rookie
sad and predictable straw man argument. With the odd exception, no business flourishes without investment sporting or otherwise. To somehow expect womens sport to be any different is an intellectually lazy position to take
Doctordbx
Roar Rookie
Not only is that bloke not getting paid, he's actually paying for the privilege of playing. There are also a lot of sports that represent Australia that are still amateur and the players do not get paid. They play for love and the desire to represent their country. So it's "Men get Paid!" "Well, only a very tiny percentage of men get paid." "But they're representing the country!" "In a sport not many people watch. Plenty of people represent the country in sports and don't get paid". It's a pragmatic reality that could easily be fixed if more people watched Women's Rugby.
astro
Roar Rookie
So, its a problem that some bloke playing 4th grade for his local club doesn't get paid, but it's fine that women representing their country shouldn't get anything either? Righto...
Brett Allen
Roar Rookie
Women’s sport is not a brand. The brand we watched was Australian sport. I have no issue supporting the Wallaroos, but if they want funding they’ve got to show it’s financially viable, which they haven’t.
Doctordbx
Roar Rookie
Well this is simply not true either. Woman's Tennis and Netball have been around for a long long time. Woman's Hockey used to be huuuuuge. Woman's basketball also went through a period where it was quite popular and had following. I think what is new is that now we have 150 streaming channels all looking for content. There is no more men's content to stream, so the streaming operators see the opportunity in providing more content with the women's sport. Added to that there is a strange shift in cultural thinking in we tell every girl they can be a CEO... when in reality not every guy can be CEO. 99.999% of guys aren't CEOs. So we have created this expectation women should be successful and get paid well for whatever they do, including get paid to play sport, simply because a very tiny percentage of men do... regardless of the economics or sense behind it... and often in spite of it. I have represented Queensland in 3 sports, and Australia in 1. All of these sports are amateur sports. I had to wash cars and do all sorts of things to raise money so I could represent my state and country. It's a privilege, not a right.
astro
Roar Rookie
Nope, the 'brand' is Women's Sport...I think this is the bit you're missing. Women's sport is a sleeping giant in this country, and the Matilda's made that very clear to anyone who isn't close-minded and sexist. It hasn't "happened multiple times with the Socceroos and the Wallabies", as proven by the simple fact that the WWC semi was the most watched television show in Australia on record. Something neither the Socceroos nor Wallabies accomplished. I'd also add in regards to this article, what's the problem with supporting the Wallaroos? What's the massive downside to supporting women's rugby? Its hard to see a rational objection to this...
matth
Roar Guru
Spoken like you have literally no idea about football as a sport or about the world around you
matth
Roar Guru
Because until this generation there has really only been men’s sport for them to follow.
matth
Roar Guru
No but you can. It’s an interesting parallel actually. The sport is basically broke so they are struggling to fund the women’s game. Sounds similar