Women's Rugby Conference at the Carnegie School of Sport, Leeds Beckett University

The organising committee was comprised of colleagues from the Carnegie Applied Rugby Research group including Dr. Anna Stodter, Dr. Sean Scantlebury, Dr. Daniel Tadmor, James Woodward, Prof. Ben Jones and led by Dr. Omar Heyward. The event aimed to showcase cutting-edge insights into research and practice across women's rugby league and rugby union as well as providing a platform for discussion and networking.

Slides from the presentations can be found here.

The conference featured a diverse range of speakers covering various topics related to women's rugby. The morning kicked off with two fascinating and interactive presentations by Lou Meadows and Stu Barrow, both coaches leading at the very top level of English women’s rugby union and league. Their talks demonstrated the importance of understanding the background and experiences players bring to women’s rugby. Coaching and development insights were perfectly balanced with players’ perspectives, provided by current Leeds Beckett students and international players Keara Bennett and Lauren Delaney, alongside Caitlin Beevers of Leeds Rhinos and England Rugby League.

After lunch, the presentations of current doctoral researchers, followed by work on menstrual cycle health, injury surveillance, tackle training and match exposure across varying women’s rugby contexts illuminated a bright future for research in women’s rugby. Lively panel discussions throughout brought the opportunity to expand on different perspectives, prompting conversations on potential law changes and ways to make injury prevention initiatives more effective.

Networking opportunities connected like-minded individuals, fostering future collaboration across stakeholders within the women's rugby community and continuing important conversations. By promoting the sharing of new ideas, knowledge, and best practice, this first Women’s Rugby Conference set a platform for future events and initiatives.

Researchers from Leeds Beckett University Carnegie School of Sport are working with other world-leading experts from University of Bath, University of Calgary, University of Edinburgh, University of Cape Town, on various projects, in collaboration with World Rugby, the Rugby Football Union, Scottish Rugby Union and the Rugby Football League to reduce injuries and improve performance in women’s rugby.