Last week saw the RFU begin the process of creating a long term strategy for the Rugby Sevens in England across all levels, including women’s rugby, when they hosted a major conference to discuss the future of the game.

With the IRB also announcing that they are conducting a complete review of their Sevens strategy it’s clear that future planning on the sport is now serious and I believe one of the main benefactors of this will be the women’s game.

Up to now, aside from England and USA, the vast majority of unions had an inconsistent approach to women’s Sevens programmes. But that is already clearly changing as planning for inclusion in the 2016 Olympic continues.

While change is necessary and welcome, Unions do need to be careful to take very separate approaches to how they structure their men’s and women’s Sevens games in the long term.

In the majority of countries it is played, women’s rugby is a minority sport and most nations are already fighting a tough battle to keep the 15-a-side level game buoyant.

Bottom up policy

It would be a catastrophe if, for example, a spanking new Sevens programme served to take women’s players out of the 15-a-side game.

I also believe it would be wrong for unions to actively encourage “dual” Sevens and 15-a-side women’s players at the top level, and instead it should use its Sevens plans to attract new female players to the game.

That sounds simplistic but the basic premise is that if unions, as say England did last year (and to be fair they had little choice), simply create their national Sevens team with the fastest and most skilful players from their 15-a-side teams, it will only prove a short term fix.

In Australia, currently all of the women’s Sevens national side are involved in the full national side and that just isn’t sustainable.

What the women’s game needs is a structure in each country which is implemented with a “bottom up” approach - there is after all six years for nations to work on getting their best national team together.

The women’s Sevens game is in a vastly different place to the men’s game – there isn’t a regular national circuit and last year’s World Cup Sevens in Dubai apart, there has never been a “pinnacle” event for the sport, though that’s obviously changing.

The women’s game currently in most nations does not have the playing numbers to support both thriving 15-a-side and Sevens game. That needs to change.

Women’s rugby needs its unions to make brave and visionary decisions to ensure that both forms of the game flourish.

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