{"id":83485,"date":"2021-06-11T02:47:00","date_gmt":"2021-06-11T02:47:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/?p=83485"},"modified":"2021-06-11T05:00:17","modified_gmt":"2021-06-11T05:00:17","slug":"momentous-expansion-confirmed-for-nrlw","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/?p=83485","title":{"rendered":"Momentous expansion confirmed for NRLW"},"content":{"rendered":"

The NRLW<\/a> will expand to six teams and a longer season in 2021, the NRL announced today.<\/p>\n

The Newcastle Knights, Gold Coast Titans and Parramatta Eels are the three new additions to the NRLW, joining existing teams the Brisbane Broncos, Sydney Roosters and St George Illawarra Dragons.<\/p>\n

The NRLW will also expand from four weeks to seven weeks with more than double the amount of games.<\/p>\n

Originally there were seven games but now there will be 18 with every team playing each other once.<\/p>\n

Titans co-owner Rebecca Frizelle said the NRLW team was a "significant step forward" for the club.<\/p>\n

"Our NRLW program is fundamental to the success of the Titans now and into the years to come," she said.<\/p>\n

"As a club we are intrinsically connected to the region we represent and now, through our NRLW team, young girls will have athletes that they can aspire to be."<\/p>\n

The top four teams at the end of the regular season will play in two semi-final matches, with the NRLW grand final to decide the 2021 premiership champions on the same day as the NRL grand final.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/GCTitans\/status\/1403180458976890881<\/a><\/p>\n

Fresh off retirement from rugby league, Blake Green is set to coach the Knights' NRLW team.<\/p>\n

"This is a very special moment for our club, our city and our region," Knights CEO Philip Gardner said.<\/p>\n

"It's reminiscent of when the club was founded back in 1988, when a young and willing group of players got their chance to create a piece of history. This is the next big step forward.<\/p>\n

"We're really excited to have the Newcastle Knights compete in the NRLW," Green added.<\/p>\n

"I can't wait to play my part in creating the right environment and pathways for women in rugby league, especially here in Newcastle.<\/p>\n

"Our clear intention is to get this right from the start because we only have one opportunity to do so.<\/p>\n

"I will be leaning on all my learnings and experience from 14 seasons in the NRL, as well as a very strong staff and core group of players who will continue a great tradition of representing rugby league in the Hunter."<\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/NRLKnights\/status\/1403177668187623425<\/a><\/p>\n

The 2021 NRLW season will begin during Round 23 of the NRL with a majority of fixtures to be played as double-headers in an effort to increase the exposure of the competition to fans. <\/p>\n

The NRL also indicated they intend to expand the competition to eight teams by 2022.<\/p>\n

"Today is a really special day for the game. Women's rugby league is the fastest growing part of our sport and it's exciting to be in a position to expand the competition after the success of the last three seasons,'' NRL Chief Executive Andrew Abdo said of the announcement.<\/p>\n

"The NRLW competition has produced some of the best athletes in Australia, it's captivated a new fan base and today's expansion will give more players the opportunity to play in an elite competition."<\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/TheParraEels\/status\/1403181187619647489<\/a><\/p>\n

Parramatta's NRLW team will be coached by former Eels star Dean Widders.<\/p>\n

"I am delighted that we are able to welcome Dean back to the club, and with his recent experience as head coach of the South Sydney women's team, he will bring a strong knowledge of the women's game to our program," Eels CEO Jim Sarantinos said.<\/p>\n

"We have one of the largest female supporter bases in the NRL, and we want to ensure the club represents the diversity of its members and fans by providing a platform to inspire young girls to feel connected with the club,"<\/p>\n

"Our club is committed to developing an elite women's program that rivals any sport in Western Sydney."<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Due to the ongoing difficulties of the coronavirus pandemic, the New Zealand Warriors' NRLW team will not take part in the 2021 season.<\/p>\n

"As a club that prides itself in supporting the women's game, this has been an exceptionally difficult decision to make," Warriors CEO Cameron George said in a statement.<\/p>\n

"The key factor is the impact the COVID-19 pandemic is continuing to have on our club across the board. We're extremely cautious of the border situation and will continue to be so. It's uppermost in our thinking as we try to negotiate this year.<\/p>\n

"It meant we were able to include only five New Zealand-based players in our squad last year and uncertainty remains this year.<\/p>\n

However the foundation NRLW club plans to participate in the 2022 season.<\/p>\n

"We need to see significant investment in the pathways and development of the women's game in our country," George said.<\/p>\n

"As it stands, we are a long way behind what we see in Australia. They have a very strong structure built on competitions, representative fixtures and a huge commitment to development."<\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/NZWarriors\/status\/1403179387281764359<\/a><\/p>\n

For a daily dose of the best of the breaking news and exclusive content from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0clicking here!<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The NRLW will expand to six teams and a longer season in 2021, the NRL announced today. The Newcastle Knights, Gold Coast Titans and Parramatta […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83485"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=83485"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83485\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":83487,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83485\/revisions\/83487"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=83485"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=83485"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=83485"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}