Women in Rugby League Celebrates National Sporting Heritage Day

After a very active 12 months, ‘Women in Rugby League’ continues to collect and record the hidden history of the women’s game, which has never been formally recognised or recorded, until now.

1996 GB Women’s Squad receiving Honours and Heritage numbers

The team have worked hard at engaging with former players to look at and collect players memorabilia and personal stories, in order to encourage and inspire future generations of women. But there’s still a long way to go. There’s never been a better time to uncover, document, and celebrate the history of the pioneering sportswomen who challenged rugby’s traditional male supremacy, and paved the way for girls and young women to play the game today. If there is to be a future for the women’s game, there is a definite need to shine a light on these pioneers, in order to inspire, empower and motivate future generations of players.

Life with the Lionesses exhibition, Pontefract

The ‘Life with the Lionesses’ touring exhibition has been a roaring success, popping up across the UK in the past year. Alongside this, the ‘Life with the Lionesses Interview Series’ on the WiRL YouTube channel has also been a huge hit with Rugby League fans, and has had an enormous impact on the former players themselves, showing that the legacy they built are the stepping stones for future generations.

Former international players Rebecca Stevens, Kim Field & Jo Carr-Will on NSHD

With the ‘Life with the Lionesses’ exhibition on display at Pontefract Museum, WiRL celebrated National Sporting Heritage Day in style with an all-day event at the museum, including a ‘Meet the Legendary Lionesses’ Q&A, as well as video recordings of exclusive interviews and match footage.

The NSHD event marked the launch of the next leg of the Women In Rugby League project, with exciting plans ahead!