Sport
These Girls Can How rugby is taking off at St Helen’s School in Northwood
The exploits of the team GB women’s rugby sevens squad at the recent Rio Olympics have elevated the profile of women’s rugby in the UK as never before. The squad’s stirring campaign, and heart-breaking fourth place finish, brought the sport to a new audience, and gave young people a new set of sporting heroes: women whose pace, power and skill could be admired and emulated. One of the greatest aspects of women’s rugby is that it helps to prove to the next generation that young people can get involved in whatever activity they like, regardless of their gender. With the mind-set of stereotypical ‘girls’ sports’ and ‘boys’ sports’ now firmly buried in the past, women’s rugby is being increasingly lauded for offering female pupils an alternative to traditional sports, in addition to improving their general level of skill and fitness, together with a tactical awareness that can be applied to many other sports. Helen Harding, Physical Education teacher and rugby specialist at St Helen’s, has been playing the sport since the age of 13 and was brought up within the Wasps Rugby Club environment. “Rugby”, she says, “taught me to value, respect and look out for all members of my team. It is a great example of how supportive people should be of each other in all areas of life.” Among Helen’s many career achievements, she has remained loyal to one club – Wasps Ladies – for 30 years. In that time, she represented her country as part of the 1994 England World Cup winning squad, and made the most of her opportunities to play rugby all over the world. During her career, she has also taught male prison inmates how to play rugby, so she has nothing to fear from teaching 13 year-old schoolgirls!
24
Spring 2017
In September 2014, a lunchtime rugby club was set up at St Helen’s School in Northwood for Year 7 and 8 pupils. Two years later, the sport is now offered to four year groups. The girls are making rapid progress and have achieved a great deal of success in recent competitions. Last year the current U15 team played in the London Youth Games. Two of the players were selected for the England Talent Development Squad with a view to stepping up to England U18 age-group. In the past season, the U15 team came 5th out of 16 teams in the South East regional finals – losing out on qualifying for the national finals by just one game. Their goal is to get past the regionals to reach the nationals this academic year, which would involve playing as one of the best twelve teams in the country. This September has seen the largest number of girls taking part in rugby trials at St Helen’s – including almost two-fifths of the entire Year 7 cohort. As a result of these growing numbers, both the U13 and U15 rugby squads will be training at Merchant Taylors’ School this year to make the most of the extensive facilities and expert coaching on offer at a boys’ independent school with a long and rich history of playing rugby. So how has Helen managed to grow rugby at an all-girls school so successfully? “The first priority for girls new to rugby is to teach them about safety – but every session also has to be fun,” Helen says. “You have to be engaging, and concentrate on building skills through gameplay rather than drills. I tell the girls when they first start playing that rugby is like Marmite – they will either love the game or hate it – but the key is that they have to discover the fun in the game for themselves. Girls with potential to progress further will show drive and determination in their gameplay. It is a game for all shapes and sizes: players don’t have to be the fastest or the strongest, and there is a position for everyone.” It is clear that the pupils taking part at St Helen’s are keenly invested in the sport and are determined to see their teams make progress. Sian Evans-Evans, a Year 9 pupil, commented that, “Playing rugby at St Helen’s over nearly two years has taught us not just how to play but also teamwork, respect, how to support each other, and how to lead effectively. Over the next year I’d like to keep learning about our team’s strengths and progress to win more games.” Chloe Rabin, also a Year 9 pupil, became interested in playing rugby at St Helen’s because “Rugby is different from other sports – it was a new thing to try and so I decided to join the club at the beginning of Year 7.” Thanks to Helen and her tireless commitment to women’s rugby, a whole new sporting tradition has begun at St Helen’s which might one day see former pupils of St Helen’s representing Team GB at future Olympic Games – perhaps even at Tokyo in 2020. Hannah Openshaw is Head of Marketing and Communications at St Helen’s School
