Category: Rugby

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PWR Rugby

How the PWR are helping the representation of women’s sports in the South West. 

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Gloucester-Hartpury celebrating their PWR Victory | Photo taken from @gloucesterhartpury on Instagram

Premiership Women’s Rugby are inspiring the next generation of women’s sports stars in the south west with three teams already in the league and two in the play offs, this season. The South West is normally forgotten about when it comes to sports, whether that is hosting events or having teams itself and the PWR are trying to change that with elite level competition. 

In the last year itself, the region hosted the Subway Women’s League Cup final in 2026, Will host 6 matches at the County Ground (Bristol) in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, and had two venues in the Rugby World Cup 2025 (Exeter and Bristol). In the region, their highest Women’s Football team is Bristol City who play in the WSL2, with Cheltenham Town, Exeter City and Plymouth Argyle all playing in the FAWNL Southern Premier Division. 

Becoming a benchmark for the rest of the league, Gloucester Hartpury are the reigning champions in Premiership Women’s Rugby and secured their third consecutive title in 2025. Consistency, squad depth, and a number of England internationals prove that they are one of the popular sides in the PWR and in the South West, playing their games at the Kingsholm Stadium in Gloucester. 

Captain, Natasha Hunt is from Gloucester herself, being with the side since January 2019 (where she signed her professional contract) and co-captained the side to PWR victory in 2023. She paves the way for young girls from the South West and helps the visibility in the region, allowing them to be just like her. 

Steadily becoming a powerhouse in the league, Exeter Chiefs have reached multiple finals in recent years blending experienced internationals and rising young talent. Widely seen as a threat to the traditional giants, the club based at Sandy Park has a strong advantage with their home fans singing loud and proud every game. 

A standout player from the region that plays for Exeter Chiefs is Bath-born, Maddie Feaunati. She could have played for New Zealand or Samoa but decided to play for her home nation England after taking just four years from taking rugby more seriously to her International debut. 

Founded in 1984, Bristol Bears are one of the most northern teams in the county and play their games at Shaftsbury Park. They have called it home since 2018, which brings security to their fans, knowing where to go on a matchday. Steadily building on becoming a top force, they have become regular contenders for a play off spot in recent years. 

Sarah Bern studied at Hartpury before heading to Gloucester-Hartpury but has been with the Bears since 2018. Despite not being from the South West herself, she continues to pave the way for young girls looking to get into Rugby. Another player from the South West is World Cup winner Marlie Packer, with the Saracens flanker recently moving to Harlequins but called Yeovil her home before moving away.

Bristol Bears appeal players from the West Country’s local talent and nurture players through pathways such as the University of Bristol. They hope to develop a wealth of rugby talent from across the region and have strong partnerships from local colleges such as SGS and Weston to help with this. 

The South West might be lacking in a number of things, but teams in the PWR is not one of them, with the competition hoping to allow visibility to the south west. 

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PWR Rugby

Meet Upcoming Red Rose, Sophie Hopkins 

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Photo taken from @sophieh15_ on instagram 

Among the 11 uncapped players in the Red Roses Squad is Sale Sharks Outside Back, Sophie Hopkins. The England Under-20s player is currently on her year abroad which is included during her Biochemistry and French degree from University of Manchester. She is currently with French top-flight side Lyon and is the only player abroad in the squad of 47 Red Roses. 

When speaking to others, she stated that her rugby role model included fellow back and Red Rose, Ellie Kildunne and would now be training alongside her this January. “I like her speed and agility, I really admire her and look up to her – that’s the kind of player I want to be when I’m older.” 

When the Red Roses were preparing for their Rugby World Cup opener against USA, She was invited alongside fellow Sale Sharks player, Eva Wood to train with the squad which gave her a good experience and learning curve. Now knowing what the players are like in the squad, she can train alongside them this January camp. 

When speaking about the opportunity she said: “Everyone’s been so welcoming, the standard of training is so high but it’s been so fun getting stuck in and getting some good learnings to take back to club.” 

“I know what’s out there and what’s possible. I just have to work as hard as I possibly can to reach there.” 

In a short time at Lyon, she has made an impression for the club playing alongside a number of French and Italian internationals but she is one of the most highly-rated young wingers coming through the ranks. When she returns back to Sale Sharks, a lot of things would have changed after many additions and a World Cup added to the ranks, making it a more competitive environment. 

“I think I’ll come back [to sale] as a more confident player and I will have had the opportunity to find out who that is this year… I definitely want to come back and make my impact known on the team.” 

“Coming back to [Sale] Sharks next year, that’ll be a good challenge. To see whether I can play in this PWR environment – it’s so much more professional now.” 

In the AXA Elite 1 Championship, Lyon finished 8th last season and prepared to launch ahead of the season back in October with Sophie hoping to learn a new, different style of play and bring some “joue” back to Sale when she returns. At the end of the 2024/25 season, she won the Sale Sharks Young Player of the Season and hopes to bring her creative flair back to the North West after her placement year. 

In the January training camp is the entirety of the squad that won the Rugby World Cup bar from the retired Emily Scarratt and Abby Dow. Meanwhile, Lark Atkin-Davies who is expecting a child in June will join the squad but will follow a personalised training programme. 

Sophie Hopkins (14) with her Sale Sharks teammates | Photo taken from @sophieh15_ on instagram 

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PWR Rugby

Premiership Women’s Rugby partners with British Army for the 2025/26 season

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photo taken from @thepwr on instagram 

For the rest of the season, the British Army will be on the match officials’ shirts at all PWR fixtures with the collaboration aiming to break down barriers for women in rugby and military careers. The new campaign “Decision Making Under Pressure” highlights the skills that are shared between match officials and soldiers alike and will see new role models in sport and the service. 

The collaboration will ultimately showcase women in both rugby and the armed forces and demonstrate the career opportunities for young women in a modern, inclusive army. The partnership will aim to increase representation of women in the army by advocating women’s sport and breaking down the barriers faced that prevent women considering military careers.

Women’s rugby as a whole embodies values that are similar to the military service such as teamwork, courage and commitment. The barriers across women taking up rugby and joining the army are linked as they have perceptions that it is a masculine environment, concerns about physicality and breaking stereotypes.

photo taken from @salesharks on instagram

The engagement initiatives will tell stories of women succeeding in both careers and fans at the games or watching on television broadcasts will be able to see the collaboration throughout the rest of the season. The partnership hopes to promote and enable more women to be involved in sport and consider careers in the Army and beyond. 

The campaign “Decision Making Under Pressure” will recognise how the match officials and soldiers demonstrate composure, judgement and authority in some challenging circumstances. This ultimately trains the individuals to make decisions under pressure which is core to Army life. 

Colonel Rich Hall (Head of British Army Regional Engagement) spoke about the partnership and said: “We are proud to celebrate our shared values and to work with PWR to promote and enable more women to be involved in sport – whether on the pitch or in uniform.” 

Executive Chair of PWR, Genevieve Shore said: “This partnership goes beyond traditional sponsorship – it’s about recognising the strength, leadership and decision-making skills that women demonstrate every day and celebrating how those same qualities translate into military service.”