High interest in new state women’s comp

New league to mirror Intrust Super Cup in lead-up to women’s Origin

WOMEN’S RUGBY LEAGUE

THE Queensland Rugby League is set to shake up the women’s game across the state next year with plans to introduce an eight-team statewide competition.

As first revealed by the Cairns Post three weeks ago, clubs across Queensland have been contacted to submit an expression of interest for a new open-aged women’s league in 2020, which would mirror the Intrust Super Cup.

The new-look format will allow ISC clubs to field a female team in the statewide comp, which would likely run for up to 10 weeks from March next year.

Queensland’s top female rugby league players are currently limited to playing in local competitions, such as the SEQ Senior Women’s Division 1 tournament, and the expansion would allow more opportunity to showcase the best talent across the state.

The QRL said it comes off the back of a rise in female participation numbers and other significant developments in women’s rugby league.

The Australian Rugby League Commission has this week also been confirmed as financial backers of the idea to get a competition up and running in 2020. QRL managing director Robert Moore said there had been plenty of interest from clubs across the state in the newly proposed format.

“This is an exciting time for rugby league in Queensland and we now look forward to the formation of a strong and viable women’s state league,” Moore said.

“We have spent the last month meeting with potential clubs and the interest is strong.

“The model we are working towards is a maximum eight-team league with a presence in all three QRL Regions – South East, Central and Northern.”

The competition is planned to kick off at the same time as the ISC, likely to be in March next year, and will be played over a period between seven and 10 weeks.

A finals series has also been scheduled to conclude two weeks before the Women’s State of Origin clash, to allow for Queensland players to press their case for a Maroons jersey.

It comes as the 2020 women’s Origin series heads to the Sunshine Coast for the first time next June.

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