By Fidelis Sukina – EMTV Sports, Port Moresby
The Sport of rugby union is struggling to get women interested in the sport, the lack of numbers by women to form teams show the sport needs a juniors program to get the interest of women into the sport.
A try by Palais sevens speedster, Fatima Rama, was trending high on Facebook, shared with much enthusiasm among Papua New Guineans.
Speed and agility, It shows the talent that some of the women in PNG possess in the sport of rugby union. But the result of the women sevens tournament was not that exciting at all.
The try was just one of only two tries scored by PNG with a for and against of 10 to 212 a 38-5 loss to New Zealand in the pool stages paved for a landslide of points against the Palais, the next was a 36-5 loss to England, the France leaving PNG 53-0.
England improved their score with a 54-0 win in the challenge trophy semi-final, PNG finishing last in the tournament after the Chinese women gave them 31 unanswered points to add to their woes.
Back at home in PNG the struggle to get women interested in rugby union is a real struggle; women participation in the sport is very low.
Capital Rugby Union Competition Manager and one of Papua New Guineas greatest sevens players Paul Joseph gave the sad truth.
It’s not easy for PNG women to take part in full contact sports, due to various reasons that we cannot go into further because of time, but it’s not of real interest to most teams to have a women’s team whether its 15’s 7’s or even 10’s, but women’s rugby union in PNG is struggling.
The only way forward for the sport to grow and get more women performing at the highest level in international tournaments, is by introducing the sport to the younger generation and hopefully they can take on the sport and move with it. at the highest level in international tournaments, is by introducing the sport to the younger generation and hopefully they can take on the sport and move with it.
