Young talent climbing the ladders of success

EXCITEMENT women's for rugby should only grow based on the successful work done by the England player pathway system that provides the next batch of young talent with chances to shine.

- PETER MURDOCK

Earlier this summer, the Under-20s squad travelled to Italy to play in the inaugural Women's Summer Series, beating Wales and Ireland. This was followed by the July U20s Transatlantic Quad Series held in Wales that saw the host nation and England face off in matches against Canada and the USA.

The Quad Series perhaps best represents the role played by the player pathway, firstly in its identification of prospective Red Roses, and then crucially by providing them with playing opportunities.

Despite being billed as an U20s tournament, the England squad comprised 29 players, seven of whom were U19s, with the remainder of the team U18s.

U18s head coach James Cooper, right, who led the squad in both games, said: "It exposed loads of young players to what the next step up will feel like in terms of speed and the physicality." With exposure watchword, Cooper discussed how team policy met this desire: "Going into the series, the girls were told from the start that everyone will get minutes, and if you look at it from a pathway point of view, we put 29 more players in front of the Under-20s coaches." Players were able to interact with coaches from higher up the pathway with U20s head coach LJ Lewis and assistant coach Sarah Mckenna present at the games.