Nichola Fryday coy on Irish rugby’s transgender women ban
Ireland women’s captain Nichola Fryday has expressed her excitement at the prospect of leading her country into the battle during an historic two-test series against Japan later this month.
Following a mixed Six Nations campaign that saw them claiming two wins from five games – and a fourth place finish in the Championship table – Fryday and her international team-mates will be the first female squad of their kind to embark on a summer tour.
Greg McWilliams’ charges will face the Sakura Fifteen at the Ecopa Stadium in Fukuroi on Saturday, August 20 before the two sides renew acquaintances at Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium in Tokyo seven days later.
The forthcoming trip to Japan comes in the wake of the IRFU confirming that 43 professional contracts will be provided to Ireland’s elite women’s rugby players next season – spread across the 7s and 15s codes. The appointment of Gillian McDarby as Head of Women’s Performance and Pathways was also widely welcomed in the past week and Fryday believes these developments can only help to improve women’s rugby in Ireland going forward.
“It’s been a really positive few months. With the announcement of the Japan tour, that was a boost for all of us after the Six Nations. Knowing that we were going to get two quality tests in the summer and get that opportunity to tour as a squad. Which is so important for a team to be able to go and play some rugby, and have some downtime together as well,” Fryday remarked in a remote press conference earlier today.
The announcement of Gillian and the contracts, it’s great news. For us as players, it’s such a huge step. For me personally, as a player, if you asked me when I had first started if I’d ever get that opportunity, I probably would have said I don’t think I will.
“It’s brilliant now that it’s gone that way for women’s rugby, and for us. We’re just focusing back on Japan for the next two weeks, and we hope that we can get two quality matches.”
However, the IRFU are also finding themselves under scrutiny following their announcement yesterday that transgender women were to be banned from participating in full-contact female rugby. Although only two registered players will be immediately affected by this decision, the union’s new policy – which applies to those aged 12 or over – means that contact rugby for players in the female category is limited to those whose sex was recorded as female at birth.
When asked for her views on this change of policy, Fryday was understandably coy.
“For me, at this time, I don’t really want to make any answers on that because I’d like to know more about the whole situation and the laws and stuff like that. So for me, I’m just going to be focusing on Japan and I think that’s something that [I] can review in a few weeks.”
When asked if the Ireland squad were consulted by the IRFU before yesterday’s announcement was made, Friday added:
“Not that I know of, but it’s not something that I think that we would be consulted on. I don’t know.”