Ilona Maher Dances to 2nd, Australia Dominates Dubai 7s, Netherlands Triumphs | WRR 182

Women’s Rugby 7s News

International

• Ilona Maher made history as the runner-up on Dancing with the Stars, with her body positivity message and sheer determination driving her to success [link]
  • What’s next for Maher? She hinted at joining the PWR, potentially becoming the highest-profile American to make the move [link]
• Australia claimed the Dubai 7s title, with Black Ferns finishing second, France taking third, and Great Britain placing fourth in the opening tournament of the 2024-25 HSBC SVNS [link]
  • Australia secured an incredible fifth successive women’s tournament victory in Dubai 
  • Olympic silver medalists Canada fell to 8th after a narrow 24-22 loss to Japan, while bronze medalists USA secured 5th with a 17-7 win over Ireland, both teams featuring nearly half debutant rosters
  • Newcomers China impressed with a 10th-place finish, Brazil took 9th, Spain 11th, and Fiji slipped to 12th
  • Faith Nathan hit a milestone with her 100th try for Australia [link]
  • Maddi Levi scored 15 tries to break the all-time record for tries in a single SVNS tournament [link]
  • Amee-Leigh Murphy Crow broke 200 tries for Ireland [link]
• Teams now head to Cape Town for the second stop of the HSBC SVNS Series on December 7-8, where a major format change has been announced. The tournament will shift from three pools to four, with three teams in each. There’s plenty of speculation about how this will affect the number of games and the knockout rounds, but we’re still waiting on confirmation from World Rugby [link]

Women’s Rugby XVs News

International

• The Netherlands edged Brazil 15-7 in the first of their two-match series, with the second match set for December 4 [link]
• The Rugby Tens Championship crowned its winners this weekend, awarding $500,000 in combined prizes and celebrating both Division titles and the prestigious Franchise Championship. The Cape Town Wild Dogs claimed the Franchise Championship along with three Division Finals, showcasing their dominance across all categories. Meanwhile, the Balkans Honey Badgers Women secured their third Division title, with both franchises now boasting three Championships each in a remarkable display of excellence. [link]
  • What sets the Rugby Tens apart is its unique Mixed Play format, which added to the excitement of Finals Day. Teams competed in a 40-minute match where the U18 Boys and Girls played the first two quarters, followed by the Men and Women for the final two quarters. The cumulative score from all four quarters determined the ultimate winner, creating a dynamic and inclusive competition that showcased talent across all ages and divisions.
• Papua New Guinea Rugby Union (PNGRU) has been suspended by Oceania Rugby and the PNG Olympic Committee over governance failures, financial issues, and their Paris 2024 Repechage withdrawal, barring them from international and regional competitions [link]
  • Papua New Guinea’s suspension from Oceania Rugby hits the women’s team hardest, as they’ve already missed the first round of the Oceania Rugby Women’s Championships and the Olympic Sevens repechage, losing critical opportunities for international competition, funding, and development at a time when the women’s game is expanding globally
• Former Wales Captain Siwan Lillicrap gives a Celtic Challenge explainer, gearing up for the 2024/25 season [link]
• More on Denmark’s Valkyries and their triumphant return to XVs rugby after 20 years: they defeated Norway 7-0 in an unofficial November match that highlighted their determination, Nordic collaboration, and plans to compete officially in Rugby Europe’s Conference by 2025 [link]
• The Latin Cup, the Hispano-Italian equivalent of the Celtic Cup, has been canceled after its one-year World Rugby funding ended, with the Unions unable to fill the gap [link]

Premier & Club

• Stirling County will face Corstorphine in the Arnold Clark Premiership Final on December 14, a rematch of the 2022/23 playoff final, with Stirling aiming for a third consecutive league title and Cougars looking to capitalize on their table-topping regular season form [link]
• Westshore secured their spot in second place in the BC Premier standings with a win over Burnaby Lake in the league’s lone match in Round 4 [link]
• Railway Union, Blackrock College, and Old Belvedere all earned bonus-point wins in the Energia AIL, with 26 tries scored across three matches, as Railway remains unbeaten after seven rounds and leads the standings [link]
• Boitsfort unseated Gent at the top of Belgium’s D1 standings with a dominant 35-0 victory, remaining the league’s only undefeated team after seven rounds [link]
• Leicester claimed their first win of the season with a strong performance at Sale, while Harlequins narrowed the gap on league leaders Exeter after Round 8 of the PWR [link]
• The second round of the Kenya Cup only saw one match with Nakuru beating the Kenya Harlequins 22-16 [link]

Women’s Rugby Features

• Megan Jones: ‘This injury helped me, it was a blessing’ [link]
• Playing coach with Janna Vaughan [link]

Women’s Rugby Media

• Girls Rugby Channel: Interviews with the Western Force Women, who came from Australia to Japan and toured Japan [link]
• All In Bonus Episode: In the middle of a testing – but ultimately triumphant – WXV campaign, the Red Roses took a well-earned day off, as a handful of players took to the water in Vancouver for a spot of fishing [link]
• OnRugby Podcast: featured EPCR CEO Jacques Raynaud, who announced a Women’s Champions Cup launching in 2026 and a Club World Cup every four years from 2028, pitting the best Champions Cup teams against Super Rugby’s finest [link]
• LTW Fancast: With storms and the Wicked soundtrack dominating everyone’s life (it isn’t just Jacob’s, right guys?), Jess and Jacob are back to review our first ever loss away in the East Mids Derby [link]
• Ever wondered what makes Sammy Sullivan a beast on the field? [link]
• The Womens Rugby Show: Episode 36 includes Loughborough Lightning players Anne Young and Nathan Smith, Tigers with Meg Jones, Gloucester’s Mackenzie Carson, plus insights from the Sale and Saracens camps  [link]

Women’s Rugby Rundown Jobs

• England Women’s Pathway Analyst [link]