World Cup Rugby 2021: Australian Wallaroos players get top domestic comp
Australian Rugby’s World Cup 2021 campaign has received a major boost with a top domestic competition next month given the green light to be played.
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Australia’s top rugby players, including those who moved across to the NRLW to get crucial match play this season, will be put in front of World Cup 2021 selectors in their own top level 15s competition next month.
After a series of women’s Test matches fell foul of coronavirus restrictions and border closures, Rugby Australia has put together a new domestic competition involving Wallaroos squad members from NSW, Queensland and the ACT spread across six teams to play in front of Australian coach Dwayne Nestor and national selectors.
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NSW will host four of those teams - the Canberra Women’s Presidents XVs, Sydney Gold, Sydney Blue and NSW Country Women’s - in the Chikarovski Cup in Sydney on November 14 and 15 at Southern Districts Rugby Club and then in Bathurst the following weekend.
The Queensland Women’s XVs Select Match will be played in Brisbane on November 7.
Top players will then be selected for a Buildcorp Wallaroos camp in Canberra in December as Australia kicks off its 2021 World Cup campaign in earnest.
“We wanted to make sure our players had some top competition,” said Jilly Collins, Rugby Australia General Manager of Women’s Rugby.
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Numerous Australian Sevens and 15s players, including Charlotte Caslick and Wallaroos captain Grace Hamilton, took the opportunity to play in the NRLW this year after their international commitments were cancelled due to COVID-19.
“We were really open about them being involved in the NRLW,’’ Collins said.
“There was a window of opportunity. It’s been a difficult year to play footy, whatever the code.”
Collins said Rugby Australia is expecting a number of Sevens players vying for the rescheduled Tokyo Olympics to also put their hand up for the World Cup in New Zealand in September.
“Our Sevens players are world class players and if the put their hands up, we will look at that. It’s an exciting prospect,” Collins said.
Collins said 10 Tests matches are being planned for the Wallaroos in 2021 before and after the World Cup including matches against New Zealand, Canada and the US prior to the September tournament.
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Originally published as World Cup Rugby 2021: Australian Wallaroos players get top domestic comp