Dedicated women’s support in new welfare package

World Rugby have announced several changes to its rules and welfare support including a dedicated focus on women's rugby.

Rule changes at international level, including the women’s game,  includes the introduction of a 50-22 kick, which will award an attacking team with a lineout should they kick the ball from within their own half into the opposition 22 on the bounce and a  goal line drop out will replace attacking scrums when an attacking player is held up over the opposition goal line.

In an open letter to the rugby community, World Rugby chairman Bill Beaumont set out his commitment specifically to women's rugby saying:

"Women’s rugby is growing globally at a rapid pace and in line with the transformational 2017-25 World Rugby Women in Rugby strategy, we recognise that women’s rugby can and should follow its own path, and not just copy what is done in the men’s game.

"We will have a dedicated focus on the women’s game embedded within the laws review process to ensure the game is all it can be for women and girls

We will advance and act upon dedicated injury surveillance within the women’s game to reduce the risk of injury

We will act upon the outcomes of the Otago University Head Impact study and work undertaken by the University of Swansea to implement women specific injury prevention programmes

We will increase our research investment in the women’s game in addition to annual injury surveillance

We will implement the HIA process at women’s Rugby World Cup and explore feasibility of technology trials to aid the identification, prevention and management of concussion."

The announcement is welcome given the long-standing inequalities in the game relating to sports science for women, where there has been a dearth of insight in relation to areas like high occurring injuries among women, concussion and menstruation.

There has been a greater focus on concussion in the women’s game in recent years, but women’s rugby has long been excluded from analyses in this area.

TheTelegraph revealed last yearthat not a single case from the women’s game was used in a recent World Rugby concussion study.