Pride Round is set to kick off on Saturday for the Fortescue Women’s Premier Grade.
UWA is set to host Pride Round at McGillivray Oval this Saturday, with their Fortescue Women’s Premier Grade team taking on Palmyra.
Falling on the first weekend of Pride Month, Pride Round is a celebration of inclusivity, diversity, and respect for all members of the rugby community.
“It's exciting for our teammates and members that are represented as part of the LGBTQIA+ community to know that UWA Rugby Club not only welcomes them, but celebrates them for who they are,” UWA Captain, Lydia Polglaze, shared.
“Pride Rounds allows us the opportunity to represent and celebrate the clubs’ commitment to our values of respect, inclusivity and diversity. These are values our players and members strive to represent both on and off the field.”
A celebration of the journey towards equality for all members of the LGBTQIA+ community, and the surrounding community who have embraced them, Pride Round is the opportunity for the rugby community to champion the spirit of the sport for all, whilst promoting teamwork, excellence and respect.
“As Pride Round grows, so does visibility for our community,” Polglaze said.
“We are really looking forward to coming together with Palmyra rugby club again this year and celebrating the diversity within our teams and clubs.”
“It's a great opportunity to show everyone that rugby is a diverse and inclusive space for everyone.”
A club-wide celebration, all Senior members of UWA will be sporting Pride gear for their matches.
“We have been lucky enough to have the opportunity to once again design the Pride jerseys for the woman's team this year. Also, all players from our men's sides will be wearing Pride socks as part of the round.”
“Juniors will be included in the celebration as well, and after all the games we will be capping off the night with a drag bingo event in the clubhouse.”
As the competition’s newcomers, it’s been a tough run so far for the UWA side. However, last week’s 32-5 loss to Wests shows signs of the team's continual determination and development, as they stand their ground against seasoned regulars.
Susie Cano scored UWA’s only try for the match, with Wests’ tries coming from Megan Liddicoat (5’), Chloe Barugh (24’), Tara McNally (34’), Haylee Hifo (43’, 55’) and Hannah Palelei (50’).
“We had a much better showing against Wests,” UWA Head Coach, Marty Lynn, said. “We are learning and improving each week. The spirit in the team is great and we will continue to celebrate the small wins as they come along.”
Coming up against Palmyra, UWA is ready to take on a new competitor as they gain their footing.
“The challenge we have set for ourselves as a group each week is to keep improving. Seeing each player set and achieve their personal and team goals is vitally important as we continue to grow the team.”
“Palmyra have recruited very well this year with a youthful backline and an experienced pack, they will be hard to breakdown after they have had strong showings in recent weeks. They will be very tough to break down, we will need to start very well and hopefully put them on the backfoot early.”
A special week for the team, Lynn is hoping the team channels the spirit of celebration into their performance.
“We have had a strong focus on our speed and fitness during preseason, hopefully as the game wears on we start to gain ascendancy.”
“[We’re hoping to see] Improvement individually and as a team. It is a special week for the team and the club as host our Pride Round. We are the feature match of the day and playing under lights is always fun.”
“I hope the team enjoys this experience as much as we did last year.”
As the Pride Round-competitiors to UWA, Palmyra is looking forward to being involved in the celebration.
“With rugby, we are honoured to showcase our commitment to inclusivity, echoing the core values of acceptance in the LGBTQIA+ community,” Palmyra Head Coach, Tony Berson, shared.
“Involvement in this celebration resonates with us on a profound level, as it represents our solidarity with the Pride movement. Naturally, we are pleased to participate, knowing that our presence contributes to fostering a more inclusive and accepting environment in sports”
“Highlighting diversity and inclusion through Pride Round involvement underscores the core values of our club and Rugby Australia. Every player embraces this opportunity to promote unity and acceptance in the community.”
Taking on UWA this weekend, Palmyra is aware of the potential threat the new-side poses as they grow in confidence and strength.
“Looking at UWA, our biggest challenge will be shutting down their quicks in the backs. You’ll see some good battles out wide and in the scrum which will make for some entertaining rugby,” Berson said.
Palmyra has seen good results over the past few rounds. A tight loss against Kalamunda in Round 3 showed the sides strong capabilities, finishing the match 12-15. Tries were scored by Alanis Toia (40’) and Megan Prinsloo (55’), with a conversion by Phoenix Mahaki (55’). For Kalamunda, tries were scored by Brooklyn McGovern, Braxton Walker and one other.
Following off the back of these results, Berson is happy with his team’s performances.
“[I am] Pleased with the effort, the team feels we are improving all the time. A good preseason has helped us greatly to get up to speed in a very competitive environment.”
“Learning to trust each other is our key to a successful year.”
“For Palmyra, the leadership of our veteran players is helping us greatly to improve. Our team consists of new and old players who have bonded well to produce some good rugby.”
Heading into the game against UWA, Berson is looking for resiliance from his side.
“[I am looking for] Resilience in facing vastly different game styles from week to week. They've learnt a lot facing some quality opposition and we want to take these learnings into this game to adapt to a fast and agile UWA W team.”
Round 4 of the Fortescue Women’s Premier Grade is set to kick off on Saturday, with Pride Round at McGillivray Oval. The game between UWA v. Palmyra to be streamed live on Rugby Xplorer.
Rugby is a game for all – including all members of the LGBTQIA+ community. To find a club, or join LGBTQIA+ club, Perth Rams, visit wa.rugby/find-a-club.
For members of the LGBTQIA+ and rugby community who may need assistance, visit RugbyWA’s Mental Health and Wellbeing page.
Fortescue Women’s Premier Grade Round 4 Fixtures
Wanneroo Divaz v. Cottesloe Shegulls @ Kingsway Sports Complex, 12:30PM
Kalamunda Kweenz v. Wests Warriors @ Hartfield Reserve, 2:00PM
UWA v. Palmyra @ McGillivray Oval, 5:20PM *Streamed live on Rugby Xplorer
