Women’s rugby: First domestic event to take place this month

Total of 12 teams from various regions will be vying for the title

KARACHI: Shazia Shabbir, one of the pioneers of women’s rugby in Pakistan and captain of the national team, believes holding the first ever domestic seven-a-side tournament will take the sport further in the country and empower the women pursuing it.

Shazia belongs to Lodhran where women’s rugby took root with the help of Pakistan Rugby Union’s (PRU) Get into Rugby programme.

Her region will be fielding two teams in the tournament starting this month, where a total of 12 teams will be vying for the title.

According to the athlete, Pakistani women have been taking the sport seriously and would be looking to prove their mettle in the seven-a-side format which is adopted by most rugby-playing nations.

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“This is going to be a big event for us,” Shazia, who also assists in coaching, told The Express Tribune. “Lodhran teams are good but we will not be taking this lightly. Our girls are experienced but we have our own challenges. We’ve picked the best players from the 10 teams we have in Lodhran.”

She said that while they were aiming to take the best to the event, several of Lodhran’s top players may miss out due to parental concerns. “We are currently working on convincing them that it’s going to be played in a safe and secure environment. I’ve gotten positive feedback from two families; there are still two more left to convince.”

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Other teams taking part include those from the Fata, Faisalabad, Sargodha, Lahore and southern Punjab regions.

The tournament will take place in Lahore while the dates will be confirmed later.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 2^nd,  2015.

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