The review, which will be led by three independent panellists, all with in-depth expertise in their fields, will leave no stone unturned to provide recommendations as to how the performance women’s programme can be improved in a general sense and in order to positively impact Wales Women’s ability to compete at next year’s Rugby World Cup.
The panel is comprised of Helen Phillips, Chair of Commonwealth Games Wales, Amanda Bennett, former Wales Women vice-captain and Sport Wales Board Member and former Wales coach Kevin Bowring.
WRU CEO Steve Phillips said, “Given the strategic importance of the women and girls’ game to the WRU, I want to take this opportunity to ensure we are progressing against the approved Strategic Plan for Women’s Performance Rugby. We were keen to involve independent experts in our review of the performance end of the women’s game and take on board their recommendations in order to ensure we have the optimum opportunities, including structures, environment and culture, needed to drive success on the world stage.
“Usually we would conduct a review such as this with any of our national teams after a Rugby World Cup cycle, but given the postponement of the 2021 Rugby World Cup, the global pandemic which has greatly impacted our ability to implement our strategic aims across all levels of the women and girls’ game; along with the WRU Board, we felt this was the right time to conduct a mid-term review with the aim of having a positive impact on our programme ahead of the rearranged Rugby World Cup. We will not avoid difficult decisions on the back of this review in order to improve.”
The review begins with immediate effect, part of which will include a survey and consultation with a range of stakeholder groups, including players past and present, coaches, WRU staff and board members to explore the degree to which the current Women’s Rugby Strategy is being effectively implemented, to better understand the factors that may be hindering progress and what improvements can be made. The review is expected to be complete by late June after which recommendations will be made to the WRU Board.
WRU vice-chair Liza Burgess said, “On behalf of the WRU Board, I welcome this timely and much-needed, independent review into the performance end of the women’s game in Wales. It is vital that we take this opportunity to reflect on the structures and systems needed to support our players and enable them to be competitive on the world stage.
“The WRU Board is fully committed to supporting the progression of the female game and we are thrilled with the calibre of the panellists leading the review and would encourage all within the game to support them as they proceed with this role.”
The panellists will report their findings to the WRU Board. Once fully considered, the WRU will seek to introduce the accepted recommendations of the mid-term report on the women’s performance strategy.
