NSWRL has today announced its five-year Women and Girls Strategy, which aims to increase female representation across all areas of the game including participation, with a goal to have at least 45,000 women and girls registered to play – or a third of all Rugby League participants - in 2032.
The strategy was launched today at the NSWRL Centre of Excellence (pictured left to right Kylie Hilder, Tarsha Gale, Yvette Downey, Ruan Sims, Alysha Bell, Jo Banning) in front of 70 guests including NSW Office of Sport Deputy Secretary Adam Berry and Manager of Participation and Partnerships Kerry Turner, NSWRL Chair Carolyn Campbell and Board Director Tarsha Gale, NSWRL Chief Executive David Trodden, Westpac NSW Blues coach Matt King, Westpac NSW Blues Women’s Assistant Coach Ruan Sims, and NSWRL Female Pathways Manager Kylie Hilder.
NSWRL Chief Executive David Trodden described the organisation’s first Women and Girls Strategy as deliberately ambitious and today’s launch as one of the more important moments in its 119-year history.
Apart from targeting an increase in the number of women and girls playing Rugby League from 35,725 in 2026 to at least 45,000 in 2032, the strategy has set several targets across all areas of the game it aims to achieve. These include:
- 100 per cent female-friendly changeroom facilities by 2032 (currently 52 per cent)
- 75 per cent of female pathway teams to have a female head coach and assistant coach by 2029 (currently 9.3 per cent) which NSWRL aims to build through a newly-created Female Coach Mentor Program that has received funding from a NSW Government Investing in Women Grant
- 10 per cent High-Performance match officials by 2032 (currently 2.4 per cent)
- 43 per cent female representation NSWRL Board by 20 June 2027 (currently 29 per cent)
“The NSWRL Women and Girls Strategy is an important whole-of-game strategy because it recognises that the continued advancement of women and girls cannot rely on participation growth alone,” Trodden said.
“It requires deliberate action, investment, accountability and a commitment to creating genuine opportunities across every part of the game.”
The NSWRL Women and Girls Strategy runs for five years up to and including 2032 and is a holistic approach that incorporates governance and strategy, leadership, community and participation, performance and elite pathways, facilities and infrastructure, and workforce.
The strategy aligns with the NSW Government’s Play Her Way Strategy which aims to create an environment that every woman and girl in NSW feels a strong sense of belonging in sport.
Campbell said: “The growth of women and girls in Rugby League is one of the great opportunities for our game.
“Participation has accelerated, visibility has increased and more women are contributing across clubs, competitions, pathways, administration, officiating and leadership.
“The challenge now is to ensure that growth is matched by the structures, environments and opportunities needed to make it sustainable.”
Today’s launch also acknowledged the pioneers of the game and past achievements to be celebrated and acknowledged. NSWRL has made significant progress for milestones involving females for more than a decade including:
- Professor Deborah Healey becoming NSWRL’s first female director (2013)
- Jodie Cross first female appointed to a senior executive role (2014)
- Yvette Downey first female appointed to an executive football leadership position (2014)
- Kylie Hilder first female Women’s State of Origin coach in the professional era (2021)
- Tarsha Gale first female True Blue appointed to the NSWRL Board (2024)
- Carolyn Campbell first female Chair of NSWRL (2025)
