Women's rugby boost in Cornwall, says coach

One of the host cities for the Women's Rugby World Cup 2025 was Exeter

More women have applied to take part in rugby at county level due to the World Cup and wider media interest, a coach has said.

Joanne Holden, Cornwall women's lead and head coach of the Cornwall Women's Rugby Team, said: "This year was the biggest intake of people wanting to play for county, so we had about 100 applications."

She said between 30 to 35 players were selected each year, and in 2024 just over 50 people applied.

Ms Holden said she believed interest would continue to increase after the Women's Rugby World Cup and with the Red Roses being in the media.

She said there were more development teams and more women "trying to get involved" in Cornwall.

Ms Holden added the aim was to "keep young girls playing in our county rather than having them have to move, further up country to play at that level".

Megan Arnold, women and girls lead for Launceston Rugby Club, said: "A lot of the players are so much more accessible in women's rugby through social media... and a lot of the younger girls can actually engage with them on there directly.

"We're just hoping that the women and girls see that and are inspired to come down and join in.

"There are so many people that probably don't even realise that there are those local clubs there, waiting for them to come and join them [and] wanting them to come down and engage."

Analysis by Ross Ellis, BBC Cornwall Senior Sport Journalist

Women's rugby has been on a high for the last three years, since Cornwall won the Gill Burns Division 3 final and celebrated at Twickenham.

Since then, the Cornwall Cup finals day has been introduced and Cornwall beat Devon in the Tamar Cup last season.

The growth of the women's game and the interest in the Rugby World Cup can only fuel the enthusiasm for the women's game.