Earlier this month on the Sunshine Coast, the black and gold of Western Australia made its presence felt - not just on the scoreboard, but across the national rugby landscape.
RugbyWA’s four touring teams competed at the 2025 Buildcorp Australian Schools Rugby Union Championships, delivering standout performances and history-making moments on a stage that showcased the very best of school-age rugby from across the country.
It was a landmark moment, not only for the athletes, but for Western Australia’s high-performance and pathway programs - and for the brands and partners backing the next generation of talent.
National Exposure Meets Pathway Success
RugbyWA’s four State Teams showcased the best of WA talent at the 2025 Buildcorp Australian Schools Rugby Union Championships on the Sunshine Coast.
Three schoolgirls’ teams represented the state across both XVs and Sevens formats, alongside a formidable Under 18 Boys XVs side drawn from the RugbyWA Pathways and Western Force Academy programs, who delivered a strong performance with two notable wins and a fifth-place overall finish - one of the state’s best results at this level.
In a fiercely competitive field, these young athletes did more than win games - they earned the respect of a national audience and solidified WA’s place in Australia’s emerging rugby landscape. Together, these teams demonstrated WA’s rising status nationally, combining skill, resilience and development pathways that continue to produce elite young rugby talent.
A Breakthrough Moment for Girls in Rugby
In a historic milestone for Western Australian rugby, three junior girls' teams travelled interstate for national competition - an unprecedented achievement and a strong signal of the growth of women’s rugby in WA.
An Under 18s XVs team and two Sevens squads (Under 18s and Under 16s) represented the state with pride and intensity, delivering record-breaking results, including a national silver medal finish for the U18 XVs Girls, and a shared bronze for the U18 Girls Sevens.
For the players, the experience of competing at national level is a defining moment in their development journey, offering exposure to elite competition, high-performance environments, and the opportunity to test themselves against Australia’s best. It also affirms the strength of WA’s junior girls pathway and the long-term vision to grow the women’s game from the grassroots up.
That talent did not go unnoticed: Mia Shelley (U16 7s) and Zhara Petia (U18 7s) were selected for the Australian Schools Rugby Union U16 Sevens Merit Team, a powerful recognition of WA’s rising stars and the quality of coaching and support behind them.
Future Stars, Backed by Visionary Partners
Behind every breakthrough performance are months of planning, training, and investment. These national results are a testament not only to the skill of the athletes, but to the collective support of clubs, families, coaches, and sponsors who share in the vision of building rugby’s future from the ground up.
As RugbyWA continues to expand its talent programs, invest in equity pathways, and raise the state profile on national stages, the opportunity for partners to be part of that journey has never been greater.
