Women’s Rugby in 60 secs – Jan 24-30

Welcome to the top women’s rugby news in under 60 seconds for Jan 24-30. We learned about the qualification pathway for the 2025 Rugby World Cup, more details around the World Rugby WXV competition, Tik Tok was announced as the first ever title partnership of the Women’s Six Nations and Australia won the second leg of Spain 7s.

In more XVs news, Watsonian has retained the Tennent’s Premiership Title in Scotland, Ireland’s AIL round 3 saw Blackrock and Sutonnians continuing to lead in the Top 4 and Conference respectively, we look at round 12 of Allianz Premier 15s, round 4 of the Kenya Cup, the standings for France’s Elite 1 and the return of Spain’s Iberdrola league.

In more 7s news, the HSBC Sevens Series pauses until Langford 7s on April 30-May 1. Fiji and New Zealand are hopeful to attend and an invitational team will be named by World Rugby soon.

We close out the week with 12 features and 13 media.

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tl;dr: Women’s Rugby in 60 secs for Jan 24-30. We learn about the qualification pathway for the 2025 Rugby World Cup, more details around the Women’s XV competition, Tik Tok comes on as the first title partnership for the Women’s Six Nations and Australia won the second leg of Spain 7s over Ireland.

60 Second Video Update

Top Women’s Rugby Stories

XVs

International

• World Rugby has confirmed the qualification pathway of the 2025 Rugby World CupL
  • Host will be announced in May 2022 and will auto qualify
  • Top four teams from RWC 2021 will auto qualify
  • Regional competitions in Asia, Africa, Europe, Oceania, South America, Pacific Four (by 2024) will make up 6 of the teams
  • For the first time 5 teams will qualify through the newly formed Women’s XV
    • 6 Nations will be included in WXV so that tournament still retains its prominence
• The WXV also received some small tweaks mostly affecting WXV3
  • Now has 6 teams instead of 4 (Oceania, Africa and South America gain automatic spots)
  • Promotion to WXV2 will be automatic with no playoff
  • Promotion can occur from WXV3 to 2
  • Relegation from WXV3 is based on a playoff against the “next best side in the World Rugby Women’s Rankings”
• Six Nations Rugby and TikTok have announced a four-year partnership spanning the Women’s Six Nations, Guinness Six Nations and Autumn Nations Series through 2025
  • This is the first time the Women’s Six Nations has had a Title Partner
• A group of former and current Ireland players have met with CEO Kevin Potts and other IRFU representatives to discuss issues raised about the women’s game in a letter sent by players to the Government last month
  • An IRFU statement issued to the Irish Independent last night said: “The meeting was constructive and was an opportunity for the players to relay their views and for the IRFU to update the group on the status of the review processes and agree next steps in relation to further meetings”

Domestic

• Watsonian retained the Tennents Women’s Premiership in Scotland over Hillhead Jordanhill 67-0
• Ireland’s AIL Round 3 sees Blackrock and Suttonians continue to lead in the Top 4 and Conference respectively
• Saracens remain on top of Allianz Premier 15s with Bristol, Exeter, Harlequins and Gloucester-Hartpurty in the hunt
• Toulouse is still on top in France’s Elite 1 and an ever widening gap between them ASM Romagnat, AC Bobigny, French Stadium and FC Grenoble
• Spain’s Iberdrola has returned with Majadohonda on top by two points over Corteva Cocos and Olympico De Pozuelo, Eibar and Complutense Cisernos chasing
• Yamanashi Impala Saracens took the lead in the Kenya Cup with 20 points while Mwamba and Northern Suburbs look to close the gap

7s

• Australia got back to their winning ways in the second leg of Spain 7s as they defeated Ireland 17-12
  • England took third over USA 19-12
• Canada 7s is up next in Langford on April 30-May 1
  • Pool A: Australia, Russia, Canada a TBC Invitational team
  • Pool B: Ireland, France, Spain and New Zealand
  • Pool C: England, USA, Brazil and Fiji

Women’s Rugby Features

• East Lothian’s Megan Gaffney, Annabel Sergeant and Liz Musgrove will all be hoping to help Scotland reach the Rugby World Cup for the first time since 2010
• Three major injuries threatened to end Black Fern lock Jackie Patea-Fereti’s rugby career. But now she’ll finally see her childhood dream come true – wearing a Hurricanes jersey in the inaugural Super Rugby Aupiki.
• Colombia’s Leidy Soto will play in Dubai next month in the Rugby World Cup 2021 Final Qualifying Tournament, facing one of their toughest challenges yet against Kazakhstan
• Keith Parry writes that while the Welsh Rugby Union full-time professional contracts are a step forward it doesn’t erase all of the discrimination female athletes face
• Black Fern Kelsey Teneti has achieved one of her life goals at 18 years of age after signing for the New Zealand Sevens team
• USA’s Tess Feury is playing with Railway Union in the build-up to the USA’s World Cup campaign in New Zealand, and used her nursing skills to good effect last October
• Rugby Pass does a Q&A with Wales’ Siwan Lillicrap
• History of women’s rugby will be lost without action says World Cup winner Tamara Taylor
• There’s more to professionalism that just being paid writes Ali Donnelly for The Times
• Fiji are on the verge of playing in Australia’s Super W
• Lucy Lomax spoke to former England captain and founding member of Saracens Emma Mitchell about the deal that was struck to establish a women’s side in north London over 30 years ago
• Scottish Rugby Chief Executive Mark Dodson: Next month’s World Cup qualifying match could be a pivotal moment for the women’s game in this country

Women’s Rugby Media

• Women’s Rugby Pod has special guest Philipa Tuttiett to talk Tik Tok Women’s Six Nations, Seville 7s, Allianz Premier 15s and Nandi’s News & Global Game
• In the 3rd episode of #drivingforceseries, Judy Murray explores the journey of legend and ‘First Lady’ of English women’s rugby, Maggie Alphonsi
• “The platform for women’s rugby is unreal…” Sharni Williams is all about the bigger picture as she deflects the praise despite equalling the all-time record for tournaments played
• Wales’ Kayleigh Powel wants to show the coaches what she can do
• Check out footage from the 2017 Six Nations as France finished a superb move
• The first Try Hards Pod of the New Year is in!
• Harlequins’ Davinia Catlin shares about being a mum, a sports shop owner and playing rugby
• Saracen’s Sonia Green speaks about her over 300 appearances and playing with the Barbarians side
• All In hits out with all things Allianz Premier 15s with Natasha Hunt, Laura Winter and Topsy Ojo
• Gloucester-Hartpury’s Ellie Underwood started playing rugby at 21, lives and works on a farm and currently sits second on the list of all-time highest points scorers in the Allianz Premier 15s
• Catch up on the action from the second leg of Spain 7s