This article was first written for and published by the Roar. 

Claudia Bell was recently recognised for her outstanding achievements in advancing the opportunities for women and girls to play rugby at the Her Sport Her Way Awards.

Bell was named Young Achiever of the Year.

I was fortunate enough to be at the awards ceremony and recognised Bell’s name, as I had interviewed her three years ago, when she was playing sevens for Macquarie University and looking forward to competing in the finals that weekend.

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This article was first written for and published by the Roar.

The opening two seasons of the Super W have been challenging for the Melbourne Rebels, who are yet to register a win.

Heading into season three, the Rebels have added experienced campaigner Melanie Kawa to their squad.

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This article was first written for and published by The Roar.

In the past, the Wallaroos were not given the opportunity to play together regularly.

Over the last decade, there have been some years during which the Aussie women have played together as a team as little as twice. In some years, the team have not played together at all.

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This article was first written for and published by The Roar. 

Scott Morrison called a Federal Election. Wikileaks founder Julian Assange was arrested in London. The verdict in the Geoffrey Rush defamation case was handed down.

Yesterday was the opposite of a slow news day.

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This article was first written and published by The Roar.

Rugby Australia launched season two of the Super W competition in this week and I continue to be pleased with the increased focus and attention that Rugby Australia is giving to the women’s XV version of the game.

This has not always been the case. In 2017, I wrote an article criticising Rugby Australia and questioning whether they were committed to success in the women’s XV format.

When I wrote that article, the Australian Wallaroos (Australia’s women’s XV team) were in Ireland competing in the World Cup with their total preparation including one Tri-Nations tournament earlier that year and a team camp prior to departure.

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This story was first written and published for The Roar.

My dad has tickets for the Bledisloe Cup tomorrow night at ANZ Stadium.

When he looked at the event information he noticed though that there wasn’t just one game of rugby happening, but two. He then called me to ask whether he should go to ANZ Stadium early to watch the Australian Wallaroos in their first game in a two-Test series against the Black Ferns.

My response to him was ‘absolutely’.

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This article was first written and published for The Roar.

This week the New South Wales government signalled its intention to be a heavy hitter in the sporting event space over the next ten years with a strategic decision announced on Monday to bid for ten world cups in the next ten years.

When it comes to women’s sport, I always say it is important to celebrate how far we have come, while continuing to strive to be better because we still have a very long way to go.

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This article was first written for and published by The Roar.

After an exceptionally long off-season, due to the Commonwealth Games, Super Netball finally returns this weekend, with a series of matches across the country.

In Sydney, things begin on Sunday with a double-header at Qudos Bank Arena with a grand final rematch between the Giants and Sunshine Coast Lightning, then the Sydney Swifts will play the Queensland Firebirds.

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This article was first written for and published for The Roar.

Tonight, the inaugural season of the Super W comes to a conclusion, when the New South Wales Waratahs take on the Queensland Reds at Allianz Stadium from 4:45pm.

The two most dominant teams have made it to the final, with NSW and Queensland finishing first and second on the ladder.

The Waratahs are thus far undefeated, while the Reds have only lost one game – their first game against the Tahs, 18-0, at Suncorp Stadium.

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This article was first written for and published by The Roar.

Yesterday was International Women’s Day, which is always an opportunity to reflect on how far we have come on our journey towards gender equality, but also a reminder of how much work we still have to do.

When it comes to sport, we have had plenty of moments to celebrate in the last 12 months.

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