Minutes:
In accordance with the Committee’s decision of 9th October, it was reported that Mr. John McMurtry, Miss. Beth Cregan and Miss. Vicky Irwin, representing The Front Row Union (FRU), were in attendance to provide an overview of the organisation’s work in regard to the Promotion and Development of Women in Sport.
The Chairperson, on behalf of the Committee, welcomed the deputation to the meeting.
Mr. McMurtry proceeded to outline the background to the organisation. He explained that the FRU provided coverage of rugby in Ireland via its website www.frontrowunion.com and through its various social media outlets. Under the headline coverage of Ulster Rugby and Irish Rugby, the organisation provided comprehensive media coverage of Women’s Rugby, Club Rugby, U20 Rugby and Schools Rugby in Ireland. It was fully Media Accredited by the sport’s governing body, World Rugby, and it promoted Irish male and female participation in World Rugby events.
The representative advised that the FRU was currently supporting three Elite Ulster Women Players by providing financial assistance, training equipment and individual development and welfare plans which included access to personal training facilities and sports therapy treatment. He advised that two of those players, Beth and Vicky, were in attendance and the third was currently away on Ireland 7s duties in Australia.
The representative advised that women in sport were generally underrepresented in media coverage, therefore, since 2010 it had either directly or indirectly, through clubs, provided financial assistance to every Ulster based Irish Women’s International. This was particularly the case with Women’s Rugby in Ulster and the rest of Ireland.
He explained that, as well as financial assistance, the FRU had also been able to offer development opportunities through media. It had sponsored two Elite Ulster Women’s Players and an undergraduate journalism student as part of its media team for the recent coverage of the 2018 U20 World Championships in Narbonne and the 2018 HSBC Rugby World Sevens Series in Paris. This had been a particularly successful venture as one of the players was now a fully accredited photographer. The other player and the journalism student had also gained full media accreditation and had interviewed four current Women’s Rugby World Championships and three Women’s Sevens Olympic Champions, amongst others.
Mr. McMurtry advised that the FRU felt that it was important that today’s youth understood the impact and influence of the media and how to use it to promote positive stories for their communities.
In terms of rugby, he detailed the expanding opportunities that existed for the Front Row Union Team as follows:
· the smooth transition of young players from underage rugby to senior rugby;
· to showcase the talents of older players who had recently taken up the sport;
· to challenge all the players through increased leadership responsibilities within the team environment; and
· to highlight areas of improvement in their individual and collective games.
He also detailed the many opportunities that existed for the players in both rugby and media as follows:
· International Club U18 7 a side tournament in Belfast;
· International Club U20 10 a side tournament in Belfast;
· Invitational International standard side (U23) to play International opposition throughout Ulster;
· Ireland Women’s Home Six Nations – media coverage;
· Ireland U20 Home Six Nations - media coverage;
· World Rugby Women’s Sevens Series – media coverage in Canada; and
· World Rugby Women’s Sevens Series – media coverage in Paris.
Ms. Cregan and Ms. Irwin addressed the Committee and provided a brief overview of the many opportunities that they had received, through both rugby and media, as a result of their involvement with the FRU.
Mr. McMurtry concluded by stating that the FRU was a progressive, forward thinking organisation, with a commitment to the promotion of women in sport. It was fully committed to supporting the development of women’s rugby and it sought the assistance of the Council in delivering this vision. He suggested that, should the FRU secure International Tournaments, the Council could assist with the provision of facilities and with the promotion of events.
The deputation then answered a number of questions from the Members, during which several of the Members commended the work of the FRU and suggested that the FRU representatives liaise with the Council’s Sports Development Unit to ascertain if any funding opportunities existed through the Council’s Support for Sport Scheme.
The Chairperson, on behalf of the Committee, thanked the representatives for their informative presentation and they retired from the meeting.