Scottish Rugby announces 28 professional women's contracts

Scottish Rugby has announced professional contracts have been awarded to 28 players, as part of its continued investment into the women’s game.

The contracts run from December 2022 to November 2023, with the first year focusing on the skills and physical development of each individual player, who will be based at their existing clubs, while also providing players the opportunity to have greater time for off-field performance activities such as analysis and recovery.

Scotland Rugby has not disclosed the value of the contracts but have said they are on a sliding scale, each aligned to performance criteria outlined by Head Coach Bryan Easson.

The players will receive additional remuneration, including match fees, via a national team agreement if selected to play for their country on top of their professional contracts.

Current Scotland internationals Rhona Lloyd, Lisa Thomson and Shona Campbell have accepted contracts with GB Sevens, with the trio competing on the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series circuit for the 2022/23 season. Discussions will continue with GB Sevens around player availability for international games.

Scottish Rugby’s Director of High Performance, Jim Mallinder, said: “This is a landmark moment for the women’s performance programme and these contracts are a significant first step in a long-term journey towards professionalising the women’s game.

“Today’s announcement will provide a crucial boost ahead of the TikTok Women’s Six Nations championship and the launch of the new global women’s competition, WXV, as we aim to ensure that we can compete and challenge the top teams on the world stage.

“The next step will look at how we can create a sustainable and competitive playing environment in Scotland, while building our high-performance pathways to support our future internationalists and ensure new talent is identified and developed.”

Scotland Women Head Coach and Technical Lead, Bryan Easson, said: “Firstly, I’m delighted for the 28 players who have accepted professional contracts. The women’s game and calendar is continuously evolving and growing and we now have an annual programme that we can plan and prepare for properly, whilst also developing the players as individuals at their existing clubs.

“The ability for players to focus on rugby each week, while having sufficient enough time for recovery and analysis, is a real positive for us and I’m looking forward to seeing what we can achieve going forward.”

Scotland Women captain, Rachel Malcolm, said: “This is a historic and incredibly exciting day for Scottish Rugby and the women’s programme. The opportunity to go professional is not one I thought I would have within my career and as a playing group we are determined to use this opportunity to take Scotland Women to a new level.”

Scottish Rugby professional contracted players 

Forwards (17)

Leah Bartlett

Christine Belisle

Sarah Bonar

Elliann Clarke

Lisa Cockburn

Evie Gallagher

Jade Konkel-Roberts

Rachel Malcolm

Elis Martin

Rachel McLachlan

Louise McMillan

Lyndsay O’Donnell

Lana Skeldon

Jodie Rettie

Emma Wassell

Molly Wright

Anne Young

Backs (11)

Coreen Grant

Sarah Law

Caity Mattinson

Jenny Maxwell

Mairi McDonald

Liz Musgrove

Helen Nelson

Emma Orr

Chloe Rollie

Meryl Smith

Evie Wills