WITH the increased interest around rugby union at the moment, the Girls Rugby setup at Taunton RFC  seized on the chance by running an Allianz Inner Warrior camp on Sunday, October 22.

The Allianz Inner Warrior camp is part of an RFU programme which has helped introduce more than 25,000 women and girls to the game of rugby since 2017. 

Taunton RFC used it as an opportunity to both bring in new Girls to the game, as well to link up with nearby clubs, who like us have an enthusiastic and talented pool of players, but not necessarily the numbers to create full teams within any age group.

The day was incredibly successful, as the girls all had a lot of fun, as well as some competitive gameplay to finish the session. The added success is that the coaches are now planning fixtures for the girls to play together as a cluster of teams. 

At Taunton girls from 11-16 train every Monday from 6.30-7.45 and the focus is very much on being active and having fun, while also building up to contact rugby at a pace that each player feels comfortable with.

The Red Roses are positioned at the top of the world rankings going into the WXV tournament, which began last week and Emily Scarratt knows how important a time this will be to inspire more women and girls to try rugby union and recommends England Rugby’s Allianz Inner Warrior camps as a fun way to introduce people to the game.

“They’re brilliant, they’ve been going for a few years now. I’ve been lucky enough over previous years to get down to some camps and help out,” she said.

“Some of the stories you hear about people who take part are inspiring, from the young girl to the 40-year-old mum of three who had never played rugby before and everything in between.”

The women’s and girls’ game in England has enjoyed an average year-on-year increase in participation of 12% over the past 10 years thanks to initiatives such as the Allianz Inner Warrior Camps. With England hosting Rugby World Cup 2025, the aim is to reach 100k registered female players by 2027.

“Take a friend, just go and give it a try; you’ll feel great for setting yourself a new challenge," Scarratt added.

"The great thing about rugby is there are a number of ways to play. If you don’t want to play full-contact rugby, you can play non-contact or get involved in volunteering.”

The Red Roses’ WXV fixtures are available here. Full WXV fixtures are available here.

Visit EnglandRugby.com/innerwarrior or tauntonrfc.co.uk for more information.