Over 120 people gathered from all across Ireland for Inaugural Women in Rugby Conference

Over 120 people gathered from all across Ireland for the inaugural Women in Rugby conference, which took place last Sunday in Killashee House Hotel in Naas. The event, chaired by presenter Gráinne McElwain, delved into the progress made in the women’s game from the first ever international played in 1993 to the present day.

IRFU Chief Executive Kevin Pott’s gave the opening remarks and reaffirmed that the Union is committed to ensuring that every girl who wishes to play rugby in Ireland has the opportunity to do so, and to do so to the best of their ability. He spoke about the increasing numbers of girls now playing the game with almost 70% of Clubs in Ireland now offering women’s rugby.

Following Kevin was a keynote speech delivered by Suzy Levy, author of “Mind the Inclusion Gap”, who is a specialist in inclusion and diversity and is current chair of the Women’s Sports Trust in the UK. Suzy spoke about how trusted relationships require authenticity and vulnerability, and why nice isn’t the same as inclusive.

Four breakout sessions were held on: Developing the Visibility of Women’s Rugby, Developing Equitable & Inclusive Leadership, Developing the Female Player and Developing the Women’s Game.

Contributions came from a variety of speakers including Mary Quinn, the first ever female member of the IRFU Committee, Grainne O’Connell, Munster Chair and former President of the Irish Women’s Rugby Football Union, former international Nora Stapleton and current international players Eve Higgins and Deirbhile Nic a Bháird.

While recognition was given that a lot has been achieved in the past 30 years, there was plenty of discussion on how we can collectively work together to accelerate the progress in the women’s game in the years to come.