Utrecht Shield symbol of women’s supremacy
There are two lesser-known trophies in international rugby which hold a unique insight into the game’s history.
Like the Ranfurly Shield, the Raeburn and Utrecht Shields are lineal titles. The winners hold them as the result of winning a match over the previous holder, traced all the way back to the first recorded instance of international rugby.
The Raeburn Shield is named after the location of the first men’s international played between Scotland and England in 1871.
The Utrecht Shield is named after the Dutch city which hosted the first women’s international between Netherlands and France in 1982.
Already in their naming, the shields illustrate the divergence of early rugby history between the men’s and women’s game.
England and Scotland would appear at the top of the list of common answers were you to ask any pub quiz to name the participants of the first men’s international rugby game. Be honest, how many of you would have named the Netherlands as the team to line up against France in the first women’s match?
That France were there is less surprising given their position in the women’s world rankings, as well as their position of influence on women’s sporting history.
Alice Milliat was the woman behind the Women World Games, the tournament which helped advance the case for broader inclusion of women in the Olympic Games. She was also the president of Federation Francaise Sportive Feminine, at the time that barette was taking off in the 1920s.
Barette was a variation of rugby, having 12 on the field, and was perhaps ahead of its time with a requirement for players to tackle around the hips.
It was designed for women, not just to take account of the views of women’s sporting ability at the time but also the barriers they would come up against.
As they were technically a different sport, the French Rugby Union’s attempts to ban women from playing barette universally failed.
Federation Francaise Sportive Feminine were there, meanwhile, to champion this women’s league to great success.
World War II saw the end of this league before French women’s rugby emerged again 20 years later.
They had been playing in domestic competitions for 10 years ahead of their fateful match against the Netherlands in 1982.
The Netherlands had a more progressive modern history with the women’s game. Sending a delegation to France to learn from their example, the idea of the women’s test was born.
It was planned as part of the celebrations of the Dutch Rugby Union’s 50th anniversary celebrations. The game was won one try to nil by the French and the Utrecht Shield found its first winner.
The Netherlands got their revenge four years later, becoming the second nation to hold the title.
Since then, it has gone on to be held by Great Britain before they split, and England, Wales and Ireland all had a turn. All up, 11 countries have held the trophy.
England have defended the Utrecht Shield the most times, which speaks to their historically heavier test schedule. New Zealand is next in line, and despite holding the Shield for much longer periods, they have defended it nearly half as many times.
Last year, during the WXV, Australia became Utrecht Shield holders for the first time. New Zealand had handed it over to France in their first-round loss. So Australia then took it home for the summer after a famous win over France in Dunedin.
Australia played Canada in the Pacific Four Series yesterday, their first defence of the trophy. Canada won 33-14 to lift the Utrecht Shield for the first time, writing yet another chapter in our game’s unique history.