Rugby history: video of England's first international released!

From: Letchworth Girls’ Rugby

The Welsh RFU have been doing wonders since the men’s and women’s unions merged last year. One major project has been tracing their national women’s team’s history – a project that probably puts them ahead of pretty much any other union anywhere.

Their latest is a real gem. Video of the first ever England v Wales women’s rugby international – a game which was also the first international for both nations.

The game took place at Pontypool Park on 5th April 1987 – and England and Wales have played at least once a season ever since – 23 times in all – making it comfortably the the longest-running series in women’s rugby… and England have won every game.

A “Great Britain” team had played the season before – losing 14-8 to France at Richmond – so for many of the the players this was not quite their first international, but this is still a very early event in the history of the game. The first inter-club tournaments in the UK had only started the season before, most players would have been playing for a handful of years, and it would be another seven years before the RFUW would be formed – the quality of play (and come to that the size of the crowd) is therefore all the more impressive.

Final score: Wales 4, England 22
(before anyone says anything, a try did not become worth five points until 1992/3…)