England and St Helens stars helping girls play their way thanks to Rugbees Programme

Two leading lights of the women’s game have spoken about the importance of child-first coaching to tackling the barriers stopping girls staying in the sport and to encouraging more female coaches.

England and St Helens legend Jodie Cunningham and Saints team-mate and rising star Katie Mottershead are both getting behind Play Their Way, a Sport England backed campaign launched last year to transform the way children and young people are coached in sport and physical activity by prioritising their rights and giving them a voice and a choice in way they are coached through their sporting journey. It’s part of a ‘child-first’ approach to help increase enjoyment and help children and young people develop a lifelong love for sport.   

It’s an approach which has helped inform the RLF’s flagship Rugbees girls programme which Cunningham helped develop during her time as the RFL’s National Women and Girls Programme Manager. Launched in 2023 and aimed at 7–11-year-old girls, the Rugbees programme has a focus on providing a fun introduction to rugby league and is currently delivered by 22 clubs. It was recently announced that the RFL and Leeds Rhinos will be working alongside Play Their Way as part of a new pilot project to grow and develop a network of child-first coaches.

One of the issues Cunningham, the RFL and other sports are trying to tackle is the ‘enjoyment gap’ between boys and girls. The most recent research from Sport England’s Active Lives survey found that 56.8% of boys agreed that they enjoy taking part in exercise and sports compared to just 37.2% of girls - leading to more girls dropping out of sport as they get older.

It’s something that the England captain has seen played out when it comes to girls taking part in rugby league and why creating the right environment as part of a child centred approach which prioritises fun, enjoyment and positive experiences is so fundamental to the Rugbees programme. 

England Women and St Helens captain, Jodie Cummingham, said:

“Prior to and during my time at the RFL, we saw the number of girls playing Rugby League grow initially, but we also saw a huge drop off for girls when they were playing in the mixed age groups. So, we were attracting young girls but not necessarily keeping them in the sport. 

“One of the things I noticed from observing the way young girls were coached was that the environment wasn’t right, especially for those who had never experienced the sport before. Mixed teams were often dominated by boys and die-hard league fans.

“So, it worked for them but not for girls especially for those who hadn’t played team sport before. We needed to provide an environment that worked for these young girls that made them feel comfortable and confident.” 

Mottershead, who coaches on the Rugbees programme at St. Helens as part of her role at the club’s Foundation, has already seen the benefits of the approach over the last year. 

She explained: “Everything we do in the session is centred around fun. I always have a plan for a session, but I pick up on what they like and enjoy, and I make time before a session to ask them what they’d like to do. If you don’t do that and adapt the session, they won’t enjoy it as much. I always judge how well a session is going by the number of smiles on faces and that’s important for them coming back week after week.”  

The emphasis on creating positive first experiences for children is a key part of the Rugbees programme and Play Their Way’s advice for coaches. 

Cunningham also stressed: “You’ve got to get that first experience right and we do a lot of work with the parents to make sure the girls are comfortable. Sometimes it’s little things that make a difference to make that first experience a better one. 

We also do everything we can to give as much information to the parents and the girls as possible. That might be sending them a video from the coach, so they know what the coach looks like, so they feel a bit more familiar with them. Anything you can do to prevent nervousness or apprehension that might stop a girl going for the first time is important.” 

Cunningham sees the child-first approach as mutually beneficial in breaking down barriers to girls continuing to play but also to tackling barriers faced by female coaches entering the sport.

She explained: “We know there is a lack of female coaches in the sport, so we also wanted the Rugbees programme to tackle that, and I think those child-first principles are important in that respect. The emphasis on Rugbees being a non-pressurised environment, having a focus on fun, play and enjoyment and building confidence is also great for our female coaches who are starting out. 

The child-first approach helps them on their coaching journey because they are building their own confidence and are willing to understand, listen and get feedback from the girls, so it’s a win-win for them and the girls!” 

To find out more about Play Their Way and download a range of resources including support for coaches working with girls, visit www.playtheirway.org.

Jodie and Katie’s Top Child-First Rugbees Coaching Tips:

• Give praise 
  Make sure you give praise regularly during a session. Try and be specific and highlight the important bits the girls did well.
• Think about pre-care
  Provide as much information as possible to parents and girls before a session to make them feel comfortable and to remove any anxiety and apprehension.
• Let them fail 
  Normalise and make mistakes a positive experience and let them know that’s okay to make one.
• Create positive first experiences and environments
  Make sure the environment is welcoming, supportive and comfortable for girls. Small actions can have big impacts!