By Sarah Walker
16 April 2025
Sponsorship required to help develop sport and prevent brain drain from our region
Women’s rugby in the North East and Yorkshire is under threat and scores of talented women are leaving the region due to a lack of opportunities and sponsorship.
That’s the message from Francesca Johnson-Harding, Chair of Rugby NE Women’s Rugby.
Francesca tells how young female rugby players are opting for university and college courses outside of the region rather than remaining at home, because they have the opportunity to continue rugby careers there.
Now, Francesca is calling for businesses to get behind the sport and the women involved, as she organises two events in the region that require sponsorship.
“This year we see the North East Women’s XV team take part in three matches, the first on the 3rd of May as the curtain raiser for Durham University Men’s 150th anniversary game against the Barbarians,” Francesca says.
“The North East Women’s team will play the Durham University Super BUCS alumni and current First team.
“The second match is a game for Military v Cancer against an even stronger UK armed forces female team on the 21st of June at Newcastle Falcons.
“There is the potential for a further third match later in the season if we can get suitable sponsorship in these two matches for the team and for the charity.”
Francesca believes it is vital businesses get behind the sport to keep scores of talented women in the region and prevent a brain drain to the North West and the South of England.
She says the demise of Darlington Mowden Park Sharks, which was the premiership offering in the North of England for elite Women’s Rugby, left “a vacuum” as it meant there was no endpoint to the female pathway.
Francesca, who has acted in the role of Durham County pathway manager for girls for the last five years, says: “Each year in Durham alone we have over 100 girls from the age of 14 upwards who are involved in the RFU pathway designed to accelerate their skill levels and to help produce strong athletes.
“Yorkshire and Northumberland have similar numbers – but there is no ability for any of them to continue to play at the highest level unless they leave our region and move to Southern clubs.”
She added it is “essential” young ladies who are developing in rugby career pathways across the North in Northumberland, Durham and Yorkshire all have somewhere local to be able to play at the top level.
“It’s heartbreaking watching all the girls we’ve developed, all the talent we have, leave to play rugby down south when your nearest premiership offering is Sale Sharks in Manchester or Loughborough Lightning,” she says.
“When we have no Super BUCS rugby team between Loughborough and Edinburgh, we must ask ourselves where do these top level girls play?
“These girls are leaving our region to attend universities elsewhere to play the level of Rugby they need and that means we lose students and graduates, we lose engineers, we lose doctors, we lose educated young women and we face a brain drain in the North of England.”
She adds the knock-on effect is that our businesses will suffer, our families will suffer, and “these young girls at 16 years old making decisions to move away from their homes just to play the sport that they love at the level that they deserve is heartbreaking”.
“For every place these Northen girls are fighting for down south means another girl loses an opportunity and so it’s imperative the North grows for the whole sport to grow,” Francesca says.
Francesca is not tackling the problem alone, as, having had a lengthy conversation with Steven Colwell from Bishop Auckland Ladies – the highest-level club in our region at championship level – they identified the need for a ladies playing opportunity above championship level.
Steven had already established a North of England men’s match against the UK armed forces in aid of Military v Cancer and had said that his inclusion in the second year would be dependent on it having a woman’s game.
He asked Francesca to join him as assistant Director of Rugby for the purposes of organising the event annually.
Francesca says: “In the 18 months we have been running we have been given masses of support and backing from the RFU to the people on the street.
“They all see the value behind having a club in our region.
“We can’t thank Military v Cancer enough for allowing us the opportunity to play with their badge on our chest against the UK armed forces.”
All the sponsorship from that match goes to the charity who Francesca describes as “excellent” as they go about doing their best to help service personnel and their families facing cancer.
“The symbiosis of this partnership has meant that the women have gained a platform from which to reverse a decline, and we have also helped armed forces families with the support they need,” Francesca says, proudly.
“We would love to be able to keep this fixture on our calendar as a new annual event getting bigger each year, however without the backing of the local businesses and the support of the sponsorship, the charity wouldn’t be able to continue this fixture.”
With that in mind, both Francesca and Steven are making a call to all the businesses in the area big and small to come and support the charity by backing the event and changing lives with Rugby.
In turn, Francesca believes businesses and our society can reap the rewards of this partnership.
“What I love the most about our sport is its ethics,” Francesca says.
“I love watching my team of girls grow, develop, make bonds, and make friendships that will last a lifetime.
“At the youngest pathway age group, they join a program that teaches them the skills to be team players, to keep themselves fit and healthy, to be resilient, independent young ladies.
“They are dedicated, hard-working and engaged. Isn’t this what any employer would want?”
She adds sports women regularly overcome adversity both on and off the pitch and bounce back even stronger.
“They think on their feet; they problem solve and have a mental strength which comes from camaraderie and diligence,” she says.
“This is the kind of person we want working in the North of England. If I’m honest, it’s not just the women, our sport in general produces young boys and girls that grow to be an absolute asset.”
Sponsorship opportunities for the North East Women’s XV team are available for both events on May 3rd and 21st June, the latter being the Military Vs Cancer charity event.
ENDS
For more information, whether you’re a journalist or interested in sponsorship, contact Sarah Walker at SASS media on 07896 894538.
Further pictures of members of the women’s team playing the Military Vs Cancer fixture last year are available upon request.
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