A deep dive into the success of Parramatta’s female pathways ahead of grand final weekend

Parramatta shocked the system with a pair of female pathways upsets to advance to the grand finals, but it should come as no surprise. Here’s why this is just the beginning of something special.

Cabramatta’s Freedom Crichton Ropati is one of the success stories of Parramatta’s female pathways program. Picture Warren Gannon Photography

Most people had Parramatta’s female pathways teams bowing out in the preliminary finals.

The task of taking down Canterbury in both Lisa Fiaola and Tarsha Gale Cup competitions seemed a bridge too far.

Somebody forgot to tell the Eels that, qualifying both U17s and U19s teams into this weekend’s grand finals at Leichhardt Oval.

It’s no fluke that they’re reaping the rewards at the business end of the season, with a calculated approach from the board down to the players.

“It’s a club approach. It takes a lot of people, alignment and a team effort to get to where they are,” head of pathways James Shepherd said.

“It starts at the board level. The investment in the pathways is significant. The club sees the investment in junior pathways as an important piece.

Parramatta advanced to the grand finals of both Lisa Fiaola and Tarsha Gale Cup. Picture Warren Gannon Photography

“It goes to the people. We have a number of full-time staff who are highly experienced and guiding each team.

“Then it’s the players. They’ve brought into the program and the philosophy of what we’re trying to teach and getting good outcomes.

“We’re fortunate to have Steve Georgallis as NRLW head coach and pathways director. It provides a good alignment in coaching and allows us to upskill the girls in an elite program.”

Parramatta has long held one of the premier catchment areas of junior boys in the state.

That’s seen the Eels win the most titles in Harold Matthews and SG Ball.

Now with the numbers of girls playing in the region on the rise, that is set to translate to success in the female pathways.

Fontayne Tufuga graduated from All Saints Toongabbie to Lisa Fiaola Cup to HNWP last season. Picture Warren Gannon Photography

“Women’s rugby league is a rapidly growing part of the game. It’s great to see so many clubs increasing their investment,” Shepherd said.

“In the junior league we’ve got numerous clubs who put in a lot of time and effort in the female space which is creating good numbers for us to select our junior reps teams.

“They’re well resourced, well coached and well managed, and there’s great alignment from the top down.

“The growth in the game has allowed girls to continue in the pathways where they previously had to have a break. The number of opportunities is great and the number of games played is showing in their output and performance on the field.”

This weekend they will face off with the Roosters in both divisions, and Shepherd is confident they can rise to another challenge.

Cody Tuimaseve scores in Lisa Fiaola Cup as Bulldogs general manager Phil Gould watches on. Picture Warren Gannon Photography

“Our main focus is producing NRLW players,” he said.

“But realistically everyone likes winning. It would be a great reward for their efforts. We want our girls to do their best. If they play at their best they’re every chance of taking home a title.

“On the weekend against Canterbury our girls rose to the challenge. It’s something they’ve been building towards. They showed great spirit in both grades and earned those victories.

Last year players in both the Fiaola and Gale Cup featured in the open-age Harvey Norman Women’s Premiership, and Shepherd again indicated players would get their chance at the higher level as the progress on a path towards the NRLW.

“We’ll certainly see some feature in HNWP later in the year,” he said.

“It’s a natural progression to expose players to a higher grade. There will also be programs for the younger players to get them ready for next year.”

Originally published as A deep dive into the success of Parramatta’s female pathways ahead of grand final weekend