Super W expansion delayed as 2024 schedule announced

The Super W competition won't be expanded in 2024 with Rugby Australia instead putting resources into the women's pathways including a new national youth competition.

RA announced the draw for next season on Tuesday, which will again feature the five Australian teams plus Fiji Drua, who have won the past two titles, without any cross-over with New Zealand's women's competition.

The five-round season, plus a two-week finals series, kicks off on Friday, March 15 with the Western Force hosting the Melbourne Rebels.

Games will be mostly played as double-headers alongside the men's Super Rugby Pacific competition.

RA said there would be additional investment into the women's high-performance program and player development pathways, with the Next Gen Sevens evolving into the Super Rugby Women's 7s competition and the launch of an all-new Super Rugby women's U19 competition.

Wallaroos skipper Michaela Leonard, currently in New Zealand with Australia competing in the inaugural WXV1 tournament which features the world's top six teams, backed RA's plans.

The Wallaroos and head office were in a stand-off two months ago over the disparity between the women's and men's programs with RA then vowing to take steps towards a fully professional future for the elite players and invest more broadly in women's rugby across national and community competitions.

"Obviously Rome wasn't built in a day so we're building towards that professional element and hopefully expansion

of the Super W over the coming years," Leonard said.

"Rugby Australia's got some really exciting prospects moving forward over the next couple of years, and some advancements in our structure and the way people work to help us to begin to bridge that gap between where we are and professionalism."

RA boss Phil Waugh said they were committed to expanding the league when more funding was available.

"While we would have loved to expand the Super W competition - and we remain committed to doing so - the reality is that the investment required to do so for 2024 would have required the removal of funding from other areas of the women's program, such as development, the new high-performance staff and player payments," Waugh said in a statement.

"In the near future, we will be able to share more details about the second phase of Rugby Australia's strategic plan for the growth of the women's game, encompassing the 2024 and 2025 seasons leading into the next Rugby World Cup in England."