This Saturday, the French women’s rugby team kicks off the World Cup against South Africa in New Zealand. All week, France Bleu Occitanie offers you a series on the women’s XV of France worn by players from home: 9 Blagnacaises and 5 Toulousaines. First episode: the daily life of the players. Still far from that of the boys who are now professionals.
Thirty players under federal contract
Thirty players from the women’s XV of France are under federal contract. Mélissande Llorens, a young winger from Blagnac, is one of them. But it’s not always easy : “Especially since I am studying next door. I am in nursing school. Even if I have my studies arranged, we don’t have any days off. When you finish school, you have to continue with training. Even when I’m in training. So yes, the body is tired. But afterwards, I was able to prepare myself well. We are 100% supported by the federation and we are fed, housed, bleached. It’s an advantage to focus on rugby, train well and perform.”
Several training sessions per week, matches on weekends and no pay. However, women’s rugby has taken a step forward, according to Toulouse’s Maëlle Filopon: “It’s been a very short time since we got out of the amateur game. Federal contracts allow us to be better prepared.”
Contracts financed by the XV of France to have a competitive team. It’s not much on the scale of all the players in the championship but it must serve as leverage, believes Blagnac opener Lina Queyroi. “Yes, it will help and help everyone, help all of women’s rugby as a whole and it will be beneficial even for players who are amateurs.”
Abadie: “It’s still derisory”
Former opener of the XV of France and still a player in Blagnac, Audrey Abadie hopes that an event like the World Cup can speed up the process: _”_35 girls under contract out of I don’t know how many who play in a club, it’s still ridiculous. Four training sessions per week after the day of work or studies for some… Perhaps a result at national level would affect the clubs who make efforts to give small bonuses or small contracts but it is far from what a boy who plays at the highest level of rugby can earn.