At the halfway point of the season, I’m delighted to say that the Womens’ XV are currently sitting top of NC3 Midlands (South). A fantastic recruitment drive in the summer that has carried on through the season, means that the womens’ squad is in a very healthy position right now.

Some quick numbers: 30 women, ably led on the pitch by captain Jasmin Bice, have played a competitive fixture including 16 debutants; five U18s have made a successful step into senior rugby; four wins from six games; 12 players scoring 24 tries along the way - it’s been a very enjoyable and successful first half of the season.

After finishing last year struggling for numbers, it’s been an amazing transformation. We’re incredibly thankful to all our team (Nockolds and Charterhouse) and player sponsors, but from my point of view having Bear Physio on hand to manage injured players back to match fitness has made a huge impact – thanks James!

The last two seasons, we’ve been proud to provide the county squad with four players, and we have added to representative honours already this season with Harriet Creasey being selected for the Essex U18s squad.

Off the pitch, it has also been fantastic to see how many people are coming along to watch the team on a Sunday. We’ve always had a strong core group of support, but to see over 100 people turn out for the Cambridge game last month was a sign of. It was a shame we couldn’t put on a winning performance for the crowd - Cambridge put on a very strong showing, but we’re improving so much as the year goes on that it would be great to take a travelling crowd up the road in February to try and get one back. The way the season has panned out so far, that could well be a title decider.

There has regularly been 25+ turning up to training so I’m very grateful for the support provided by Dave Walker, Becca Coppen and Phil Poyser who make up this year’s coaching group – as well as our own sponsors, Unit TV and FC Electrical. Thanks also to Kate Hawkins who has stepped into the role of Women & Girls’ Chair – coaching’s a lot easier when you’ve got a friend you trust to make sure every single other thing is under control away from the pitch. However, there’s never a time to sit back and relax, the ultimate desire is to keep growing the squad to the point where we can field more than one side.

We will be running an Inner Warrior session on Tuesday 9 January 2024 where everyone will do a real back-to-basics session… if you’re considering giving rugby a go this would be an ideal time to start. But please feel free to turn up any Tuesday after that or speak to any of the squad when you see them around the club. You’ll normally find the props at the bar trying to scrummage against the men’s sides!

I’ll finish off by wishing you all a Happy Christmas and look forward to seeing you all at training or on the touchline in 2024!