Ealing Trailfinders Women

Ealing Trailfinders Women are a women's rugby union club based in Ealing, Greater London. They currently compete in Premiership Women's Rugby, the highest division of women's rugby union in England.

Ealing Trailfinders Women
Full nameEaling Trailfinders Women
UnionRFU
Founded2023
Ground(s)Trailfinders Sports Ground (Capacity: 5,000)
Director of RugbyGiselle Mather
Captain(s)New Zealand Shannon Ikahihifo
League(s)Premiership Women's Rugby
First match
Harlequins Women 31–21 Ealing Trailfinders Women
(Twickenham Stoop, London)
30 September 2023
Largest defeat
Ealing Trailfinders Women 10–45 Saracens Women
(Trailfinders Sports Ground, London)
21 October 2023

History

Amateur side

In the 2010–11 season, Ealing Trailfinders Rugby Club operated an amateur women's side, Ealing Jades Ladies, which competed in RFUW NC South East 1. They finished 7th place out of the 8 teams.[1] The team did not appear again until the 2021–22 Women's NC 3 South East (Central) season when they were known as Ealing Trailfinders Ladies and they finished at the bottom of the table.[2] In 2022–23, they competed in Women's National Challenge 3 South East (West) when they finished in 5th place.[3]

After the founding of Ealing Trailfinders Women, Ealing Trailfinders Ladies changed names and became Ealing Women II. Ealing Trailfinders Women were founded as a new team.

2023 onwards: Premiership Women's Rugby

In July 2022 Giselle Mather was named as Director of Women's Rugby at Ealing Trailfinders.[4] The club then announced in December 2022 that it had been granted a license by the RFU to join the Premier 15s (later renamed to Premiership Women's Rugby) starting in the 2023–24 season.[5] The full coaching staff for the club was named later that month.[6] The clubs first signing was England wing Abby Dow.[7]

Current players

The Ealing Trailfinders squad for the 2023–24 season is:

Note: Flags indicate national union under World Rugby eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-World Rugby nationality.

Player Position Union
Megan Brodie Prop Ireland Ireland
Jo Bucknall Prop England England
Liz Crake Prop England England
Sara Seye Prop Italy Italy
Andrea Stock Prop Ireland Ireland
Alex Zdunek Prop England England
Elisa Riffonneau Hooker France France
Amanda McQuade Hooker Ireland Ireland
Lindelwa Gwala Hooker South Africa South Africa
Megan Barwick Lock England England
Tyson Beukeboom Lock Canada Canada
Rowena Burnfield Lock England England
Shya Pinnock Lock England England
Charlie Willett Lock Ireland Ireland
Cristina Blanco Back row Spain Spain
Lauren Brooks Back row England England
Abi Burton Back row England England
Charlotte Cheshire Back row England England
Fiona Cooper Back row Scotland Scotland
Shannon Ikahihifo Back row New Zealand New Zealand
Annabel Meta Back row England England
Kie Tamai Back row Japan Japan
Kate Zackary Back row United States United States
Player Position Union
Emma Swords Scrum-half Ireland Ireland
Sophie Molton Scrum-half England England
Julia Schell Fly-half Canada Canada
Lauren Knowler Centre England England
Ellie Lennon Centre England England
Sophie Ragg Centre England England
Sophie Shams Centre England England
Ella Amory Centre Belgium Belgium
Ellie Boatman Wing England England
Jess Cooksey Wing England England
Abby Dow Wing England England
Amy Wilson Hardy Wing England England
Courtney Pursglove Wing England England
Emma Uren Wing England England
Liz Musgrove Fullback Scotland Scotland
Rosie Inman Fullback England England
Meya Bizer Fullback United States United States

Season Summaries

League Cup
Season Competition Final position Points Play-offs Competition Performance
2023—24 Allianz Premiership Women's Rugby Allianz Cup

Gold background denotes champions
Silver background denotes runners-up
Pink background denotes relegated

Club staff

The coaching staff for the 2023—24 season is:[6]

Role Name
Director of Women's Rugby Giselle Mather
Forwards, Line-out and Breakdown Coach Barney Maddison
U23s and Defence Coach Oli Bishop
Assistant Line-out and Assistant Defence Coach Pat Metcalfe-Jones
Scrum Coach Brett Wilkinson
Skills Coach and Athlete Mentor Kim Oliver

References

  1. "RFU". www.englandrugby.com. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  2. "RFU". www.englandrugby.com. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  3. "RFU". www.englandrugby.com. Retrieved 2023-07-15.
  4. "Giselle Mather Becomes Ealing Trailfinders' Director Of Women's Rugby". ealingtrailfinders.com. Retrieved 2023-07-15.
  5. "Allianz Premier 15s Update". www.premier15s.com. Retrieved 2023-07-15.
  6. "Ealing Trailfinders Announce Their Women's Coaching Team". ealingtrailfinders.com. Retrieved 2023-07-15.
  7. "Abby Dow: England wing to leave Harlequins and join Ealing Trailfinders at end of season". BBC Sport. 10 May 2023. Retrieved 27 July 2023.
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