Women's rugby league boom: Female Raiders lead to three new teams in Canberra comp

The Canberra Times can reveal the Katrina Fanning Shield will be expanded this year, with three new teams joining the competition which starts on April 29.

It has forced competition organisers to split the Katrina Fanning Shield into two divisions. There will be seven teams in the top-tier division, and another four in the level below.

The West Belconnen Warriors, Gungahlin Bulls and Queanbeyan Kangaroos will join the competition this year, but South Coast United has withdrawn.

The Canberra Region Rugby League will publish a new draw next week and the division system has been implemented to ensure close games.

Raiders women's coach Darrin Borthwick will keep a close eye on players in the Canberra competition as he continues to build his squad for the club's debut NRLW season.

Bulls coach David Small said split divisions were the perfect way to go for new sides after significant score differences last season, and some going through the season without winning a game.

"There is finally light at the end of the tunnel for these girls, it used to be just Tarsha [Gale Cup] and if you wanted to go further you had to move out of town," Small said.

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"My girls are very excited and pumped to get out there."

Small also expects to see participation numbers rise in the junior girls ranks as well as senior competitions.

"It will be exciting for the girls that are around 15-16 years old and for them to be keen about a future in rugby league," Small said.

As the competition continues to grow Small hopes that this will mean women can stick to one sport and give it their full focus.

"It will be good in the future when the ladies can just stick to the one sport, cause at the moment if you are good at league you are good at a lot of other sports as well," he said.

The Bulls also have three of their players selected in the Australian oztag side, and their national-team duties will clash with the Katrina Fanning Shield schedule

Yass won the competition last year and will be keen to go back to back, but Gungahlin has managed to lure several players from the premiership-winning side.

The Raiders have set up a Katrina Fanning Shield academy this year, which was designed to bridge the gap between Canberra's competition and the elite pathway.

Borthwick has been working with several players he hopes can make the leap to the NRLW, with plans to make the Katrina Fanning Shield a genuine development competition for professional women's rugby league.

There are also several players in the women's league-tag competition capable of making the step up, with those games to begin in Canberra on Saturday.

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