A 62-strong group of former and current Irish women's international rugby players yesterday sent a letter to the Irish government requesting help in their back and forth between the IRFU.
The letter detailed how unhappy the group were with the current level and effort put into women’s rugby in Ireland.
Director of Rugby Anthony Eddy was recently slammed by Irish hooker Cliodhna Moloney in a tweet. There was also an issue around the current state of playing facilities at an inter-provincial game.
I could have sworn slurry spreading season was spring… I stand corrected 👀 https://t.co/fgG8ef3CbR
— Cliodhna Moloney (@cmoloney3) November 9, 2021
Letter from the IRFU
The IRFU have now responded to the allegations and expressed disappointment with it. They mentioned they are fully behind the development of the women’s game;
"It is disappointing that this group should chose now to come out with a series of allegations, given all involved in Irish Rugby are fully aware that two well resourced, independent reviews are in train and it is from these reviews that lessons, based on fact, can be learned and the foundations built which will serve the women’s game well for future generations.
The IRFU is fully committed to the development of the women’s game based on a sustainable structure, from grassroots up to international level...
For the benefit of those who may not be aware and to balance, in some way, the opinions promoted in this recent letter it is important to reiterate that the IRFU has already publicly announced and set in train an independent review into, what was for all in Irish Rugby, players, team management, IRFU committee and executives, the hugely disappointing failure of our women’s senior international team to qualify for the Women’s Rugby World Cup in 2023."
You can read the response in full here.
The players are expected to respond
IRFU not taking this lying down
Refute the claims in the letter, express disappointment in its timing
Statement below ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/rV9Q4ujNwb— Rúaidhrí O'Connor (@RuaidhriOC) December 13, 2021
The initial letter to the government
Minister of State for Sport Jack Chambers and Minister for Sport Catherine Martin were written to by the players. The letter states that “the aim is to seek your support now to enable meaningful change for all levels of the women’s game in Ireland from grassroots to green shirts.”
It asks for “transparency” from the IRFU in regards to their reviews of the World Cup Qualification failure and their review into the implementation of the ‘Women in Rugby Action Plan’.
“Notwithstanding the challenges of the pandemic, these facts represent significant failure. This is not just a recent issue. At the end of every World Cup cycle in the Irish women’s game, there has been a review. None of these reviews have ever been made public, with the IRFU cherry picking a handful of findings to present to the public.”
The team’s lack of success since winning the 2014 Grand Slam have come since the allegations. These failures are also brought up in the letter:
"We write in the wake of a series of recent disappointments for the international team, on and off the field, but ultimately recent events simply reflect multiple cycles of substandard commitment from the union, inequitable and untrustworthy leadership, a lack of transparency in the governance and operation of the women’s game both domestically and at international level, and an overall total lack of ambition about what it could achieve.
In 2014, the Irish XV team finished the season ranked fourth in the world, having won a Six Nations Grand Slam the year before. This triggered the beginning of a new World Cup cycle and new leadership within Irish rugby with David Nucifora and Anthony Eddy overseeing the women’s programme.
The end of this cycle ended in bitter disappointment as the team finished eighth in their home World Cup in 2017, crashing out in the pool stages".
It remains to be seen what happens next.
Silence in the face of injustice is complicity.
62 brave and prominent figures in Irish rugby have come together to write a letter to the Government calling for support and “meaningful change” following the IRFU’s “historic failings” to the women's game.
Powerful. pic.twitter.com/VV4qMmGtAe— Her Sport (@HerSportDotIE) December 13, 2021
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