Welsh international Tweets response to 'I don't care' rugby trolls

A new social media campaign has started in response to the online abuse and trolling women’s rugby has received over the past week.

Following the announcement on Wednesday that this year’s Women’s Six Nations has been postponed, Twitter has been flooded by trolls using it as an opportunity to abuse the sport with the comment “I don’t care”.

But an #icare hashtag has been launched online as a counter to these attacks. On top of that, players have gone a step further and provided a retort to these trolls, including Wales and Bristol Bears fly-half Elinor Snowsill.

“I don’t particularly care about men's football,” she wrote on Twitter. “So when I see a post about men’s football, what do I do? I continue scrolling & don’t give it a second thought. I get on with my life. Certainly don’t waste precious time commenting on men’s football posts about the fact that I don’t care.

“Do those men trolling articles about women’s rugby genuinely think we are going to believe them when they say they don’t care? Are they really that stupid? The simple act of commenting to declare the statement proves the opposite to be true.

“#icare about my sport, as do millions others.

“Rugby has truly enriched my life in a way I could never have imagined. It has given me friends for life from all over the world, it has taken me to all corners of the globe, it has given me a full-time job, it has given me a purpose and it has taught me life’s most important values.

“To those men… can you say the same about your hobby of online trolling.”

Women's rugby commentator Nick Heath also suggested more male rugby players come out in support of their female counterparts. "Women's rugby players don't 'need' men's players but while many of these apparent "I don't care" social media trolls seem to be following rugby pages / accounts to begin with, it might help if more high profile men's players showed some #icare support for the women's game."

Abuse of this nature is not necessarily new unfortunately. Only last month several players from the men’s game defended the women’s game in the face of online abuse.