Don’t compare frogs and grandmothers

The rise and rise of women’s rugby has been incredible to witness. The Women’s Rugby World Cup 2014 has smashed all records of TV viewing figures, media exposure and attendance. Most importantly, for those watching the games, you can see the marked change in the quality of play.

The kicking is one element that stands out – kickers have been making a name for themselves – Agricole, Briggs, Scaratt to name a few. It’s been refreshing to see captains tell the referees, “We’ll have a go ref” and expecting 3 points each time.

The hits have been monumental – Jenny Murphy seems to play with no regard for her own safety and her efforts against a big English team were remarkable. The try saving tackle of Canada’s wonder winger Magali Harvey against France was one of my favourite moments of the World Cup.

The width on the passing has been there too with some excellent tries being run in after space has been identified and exploited.  Murray Kinsella gives some excellent analysis of how intelligent the play has been at the Women’s World Cup.

It hasn’t all been perfect and there is always room for improvement. There have been some voices of discontent – mine included – about the selection of referees. Surely the best games at a Rugby World Cup deserve the best officials? It’s great to see the IRB committed to developing opportunities for women to officiate but the Women’s rugby World Cup is the pinnacle of the game for women, and deserves the best.  

That said, the performance of Helen O’Reilly in a difficult high pressured semi final was excellent and makes me wonder what is it that Ireland is doing to produce such good officials. And also how much of her success is down to the pathway that the IRFU and the IRB have provided.  

However, all the euphoric positivity aside, there is a big gap between some of the teams. Reading some of the coverage of Kazakhstan and listening to the commentary has been challenging, infuriating and patronising at times. They are not the only minnows being exposed of course, but the ones I know best. When talking down about Kazakhstan, we are comparing frogs and grandmothers. Yes, I said it. It’s the Serbian equivalent of “apples and oranges”. Perspective is important.

In speaking with Kazakhstani flanker Marianna Balashova ahead of their game with Spain, she had a tonne of questions about Irish rugby and their progress. Are they professional? How much do the coaches earn? How many are moms? How many clubs in Ireland? How many camps do they have a year? How often do they train? It went on and on and on... She was right to ask.

Yes, they have a lot more clubs, players and competitions. No they are not professional – they all hold down jobs and some of them even play outside Ireland. They don’t have so many games, but the 6 Nations each year gives them regular competition. The IRFU and the Irish Sports Council have just invested 1.1 million Euro annually in women’s sevens. This investment does not take into account the additional support for development and grassroots programs and staff focused on women’s rugby.

They train incredibly hard and their dedication to their task is second to none. Gym sessions, pitch sessions and more. I explained that some players have training with their club, club games, provincial training, provincial games and then national team commitments. Some of the clubs field development teams because they have so many players.

One of the key criteria for the IRFU with national teams is that they be treated and supported equally. This was a vital part of the success of the national team and something that political support for the women’s game has fought for in Ireland.

Not being the type of person to make excuses, Marianna was not satisfied. When I started to talk about their support team she was really fascinated: Head Coach, Team Manager, Assistant Coach x 2, Fitness Coach, Physio, Doctor, Baggage Master, Communications Manager, Performance Analyst.

The system underneath is critical in delivering volume of talent, but how that is managed at the elite end was just as important. Maximising all resources, every detail was examined and exploited to the advantage of the team.

In Kazakhstan, the majority of “clubs” do not have a clubhouse or pitch. The season is from April/May to September due to the extreme weather. The country is the 9^th largest in the world – going to an away match can take a few days domestically covering 3 time zones. The tinyplayer pool of 300 or so brave souls  juggle 7s and 15s. In the 4 years between World Cups they will not have a proper 15s test outside of Asia.

They receive almost no government support and a minuscule amount of media coverage – this despite dominating Asian rugby for the best part of two decades. Kazakhstan have never truly capitalised on that success while Ireland are rightly exploiting it as much as possible.

This has not been handed to the Irish women’s team - it has been a struggle for the women’s game in Ireland to gain this position and I hope the performances of the team will be a significant return on investment for the IRFU that they will continue on this course. Building a culture takes times and commitment – something that Philip Doyle and his team know only too well.

I could see that the Irish situation was difficult for Kazakhstani players to appreciate. I would love to see one of them experience it first hand by playing in Ireland for a year. Yakovleva in the centre for Munster would be great to see!

The above is not an excuse – success is hard earned and more about the culture than the cash. The main difference is that we are not comparing like with like. At the next Women’s Rugby World Cup I hope commentators will compare frogs with frogs, but not frogs with grandmothers.