The girls group came about when an opportunity was seen by one of the female coaches at the Wednesday Night PUAP.
Girls were keen to try touch rugby but not so keen on playing alongside the boys who had more skill and more confidence in the sport (as they have been playing it for much longer).
Kate Taylor who is the manager of the Friday Night Girls (FNG) group saw an opportunity, a chance to have a girls-only group, train and play at their own pace within their comfort zone.
Kate discussed this with Nick Ralph who backed her idea 110%. FNG was born, starting in September 2021. The first night had 16 girls, they now average about 25 each week.
The idea was it to be fun and to introduce the sport slowly in a non-competitive way. Girls of all different ages, sizes, abilities and backgrounds could attend and enjoy the sport.
A group warm-up, a skills section then break out into groups for a game of touch rugby.
The idea worked and it is now a very popular session at the club. Each Friday 6- 7pm the FNG train (term time only).
In December 2021 the club decided to introduce contact rugby to the girls (9 years and above) if they wanted to try it. Four girls were ready to give contact training a go, little did the coaches know that this would become so popular!
The FNG contact session was born, ran by Minnie Morgans who plays for the ladies Tigers team.
Minnie covers the contact drill and conditioning preparing the girls for the next step.
Minnie runs the contact side while Kate continues to run the touch rugby side offering something for all.
We now have a dedicated girls group run by Kate and Minnie. It’s fun, inclusive, entertaining as well as a friendly group for all girls to join. Our youngest player is 4 and some of the mums have now started to join in the fun.
The aim is for each of the girls to feel part of a team and enjoy the sport at their own pace. Once the warmup and skills section has been done the group breaks out into contact and non-contact covering all aspects of the game.
The team is continually evolving and growing, the next step is to make it even bigger and better.
The aim is to get more girls involved so the group can be broken down into age groups so matches can be played going forward, this is for both contact and non-contact.
The girls’ group has merged into the Wednesday PUAP session where they have their own smaller group. This gives the girl’s chance to train twice a week if they wish.
Setting up a girls-only group up was always going to be a challenge, but it worked and is a massive success.
Girls’ rugby is an ever-growing sport, the opportunities are there for the girls, Kate and Minnie are there to see this happens, they are an unstoppable duo.
Kate and Minnie have a group of helpers who help each week to make the session a success, they are always looking for more helpers to take the group to the next level.
Manager: Kate Taylor
Coaches: Kate Taylor / Minnie Morgans
First Aider: Kate Taylor
Coaches Assistants: Rosie Hendel, Katrine Elliot, Sam Cook
Training time 6-7pm Fridays, term time only.
Suitable clothing and a named water bottle are required for each session
First 2 sessions are free, then £2 for each session.