Australia women's national rugby union team

History

Origins

Women had begun playing rugby in Australia hand-in-hand with the expansion of the game, with the earliest documented matches in the regional areas of New South Wales during the late 1930s.

As the popularity of men's rugby expanded internationally in the 1970s and 1980s, the appetite for international women's sides grew following the inaugural men's Rugby World Cup in 1987.

Following the first women's rugby union Test match in 1982 and the inaugural Women's Rugby European Cup in 1988 that saw Great Britain, France, the Netherlands and Italy play, the British side was replaced by their regional sides, with England and Wales playing their first matches in 1987, before being joined by Canada and the United States later that year. The Black Ferns followed in 1990 - culminating in the inaugural Women's Rugby World Cup in 1991.

In Australia, the first National Women's Tournament was held in Newcastle, NSW in 1992 - and finally, in 1993, the Australian Women's Rugby Union was formally established, with the organisation selecting the name ‘the Wallaroos’ as the moniker of the new national Women's side, named after one of the oldest clubs in Australia that participated in the Sydney/NSW competition, which later became the Shute Shield.

1990s: early years

The Wallaroos played their first international in 1994 against New Zealand. The match was played at North Sydney Oval, and New Zealand won the game 37–0. Karla Clay became the holder of Wallaroos Cap number one, which was retrospectively presented following the commencement of the Wallaroos caps program in 2008.

Initial matches in the opening years would take the form of single annual Test matches against the Black Ferns, marking the start of the Laurie O'Reilly Cup which is contested to this day between the two sides. The Wallaroos would play their first non-Trans Tasman match in 1997, against the United States.

The Wallaroos played 11 Tests during the 1990s, placing fifth at their first World Cup appearance in 1998 in the Netherlands, and winning their first-ever Test match against Ireland in their opening game of that tournament, 21–0.

2000s

Progress was slow for the Wallaroos in terms of game time and development throughout the 2000s, with the side playing 16 Test matches during the 2000s, mostly during World Cups.

They replicated their fifth-placed World Cup finish at the 2002 event in Barcelona, Spain - which included inaugural victories against Wales, Scotland, South Africa - and most notably, 1991 World Cup champions the United States.

The side would play no Tests between the 2002 and 2006 World Cups, with the side finishing in 7th at the 2006 World Cup in Canada. Test matches against the Black Ferns would resume in 2007, before, under new coach John Manenti the Wallaroos would pick up their biggest win ever in their history during qualification for the 2010 Rugby World Cup, defeating Samoa 87–0.

2010s: growth and promise, revamped domestic competition

Under Manenti, the Wallaroos had their best-ever World Cup to date at the 2010 World Cup in England, finishing runner-up in Pool A but still qualifying for the semi-finals for the first time. While they would fall in their semi-final 15–0 to hosts England, they would go on to defeat France for the first time, prevailing 22–8 at the Twickenham Stoop to finish in third place.

However, after Manenti's departure, the side would not play any further matches for another four years, with Paul Verrell coming in as coach in 2013. In 2014, The Wallaroos played two Test matches in New Zealand against the Black Ferns and North American outfit, Canada. Although losing both of these matches, the Wallaroos took this experience into the 2014 Women's Rugby World Cup.

The Australian team was second in the pool stage behind host team France and was narrowly defeated by the United States in the first playoff, but beat Wales in their last match to finish the tournament in seventh place.

The side would pick up more Test matches throughout the latter half of the 2010s as the women's rugby program continued to expand, with a sixth-placed finish at 2017 Women's Rugby World Cup.

2018 would see the launch of the Super Rugby Women's competition - at the time branded Super W - replacing the National Women's Championship as the Wallaroos prime national competition and aligning with the men's state Super Rugby sides. This would kick-start the growth of the professional women's program over the next decade.

2020s: towards full professionalism, first major title

The 2020s would start frustratingly for the Wallaroos, with all planned test matches in 2020 and 2021 cancelled due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the planned 2021 World Cup in New Zealand pushed back a year.

However, things would bounce back quickly with World Rugby announcing increased investment in the Women's game and the launch of the new tiered WXV competition, plus sanctioning a new tournament in the Pacific which became the annual Pacific Four Series played between Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United States.

With the arrival of a new coach in Jay Tregonning and the inclusion of the Fijiana Drua in Super Rugby Women's, momentum around the Wallaroos began to pick up, with 2022 marking the first time in their history the team had a full international calendar.

After defeating Fiji in their first clash of 2022 - a clash that has since become an annual fixture, the Wallaroos would go on to finish last in the inaugural Pacific Four Series. However, the side saw notable improvement, achieving their best result so far against the Black Ferns in Adelaide in the Laurie O'Reilly Cup, eventually falling 22–14.

Australia played the opening match of the 2021 Rugby World Cup, stunning New Zealand by running in the first three tries and leading at halftime. However, the experience of the hosts - and eventual champions - shone through, going on to win 41–17. Despite this, the Wallaroos reached the quarter-finals after defeating Scotland and Wales in the group stages, before going down to runners-up England 41–5 in Auckland. 2022 would also see Australia announced as host for the 2029 Rugby World Cup.

2023 continued to show promise for the Wallaroos, finishing third in the Pacific Four Series and qualifying for the inaugural WXV 1 tournament. They would go on to enjoy a strong campaign, finishing in third and defeating Six Nations runners-up France.

2024 saw massive changes for the Wallaroos. Tregonning departed as head coach, and he was replaced by former England international Joanne Yapp, who became the first full-time coach for the national side. The year also saw substantial growth in the number of Test matches, tour matches for Super Rugby Women's sides, and player contracts at the national and domestic level, with the first fully professional contracts provided.

However, the year would be one of ups and downs on the field, picking up the wooden spoon in the 2024 Pacific Four Series and losing their qualification for WXV 1. Heavy losses to the Black Ferns also followed, and in their inaugural end-of-year tour, the side sustained their first-ever loss to Wales.

However, Yapp's side would finish the year with several historic firsts, picking up their largest-ever win at home defeating Fiji 64–5. The year culminated in the team's first-ever major title, being crowned 2024 WXV 2 Champions after going undefeated in the tournament in South Africa, which also saw the side qualify for the 2025 Rugby World Cup.

Wallaroos Assistant Coach, Sam Needs, was appointed as interim Head Coach until the end of the 2026 Pacific Four Series following the departure of Joanne Yapp after the World Cup in England.

Records

Rugby World Cup

Main article: Australia women at the Rugby World Cup

Overall

(Full internationals only)

Below is a summary of test matches played by the Wallaroos, updated to 13 September 2025:

| Opposition | First | P | W | D | L | % | | 2014 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 8 | | | 1998 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 8 | | | 2022 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | | | 1998 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | | | 1998 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | | | 2017 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | | | 1994 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 29 | | | 2009 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | | | 1998 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | | | 2006 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | | | 1998 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | | | 1997 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 6 | | | 2002 | 10 | 8 | 0 | 2 | | Summary | 1994 | 95 | 34 | 1 | 60 |

Trophies

Australia currently contests two trophies with other nations, being the Laurie O'Reilly Cup against New Zealand and the Women's Vuvale Bowl against Fiji. The former has been contested since 1994, with the Wallaroos still to claim the Cup over the Black Ferns. The latter has been contested since 2025, the inaugural fixture in Suva saw the Wallaroos claim the Bowl, winning 43–7.

Honours

• WXV
  • WXV2 Winners: 2024

Players

Current squad

Australia named their final 32-player squad on 4 August for the 2025 Women's Rugby World Cup in England.

1 On 11 August 2025, Charlotte Caslick was ruled out of the World Cup after failing to recover from ankle surgery. She was replaced by Manu'a Moleka.

Note: The age and number of caps listed for each player is as of 22 August 2025, the first day of the tournament.

Notable players

Main article: List of Australian women's national rugby union players

Cheryl McAfee is the first Wallaroo to be inducted into the World Rugby Hall of Fame in 2021. She led the Australian women's sevens team in the inaugural Women's Rugby World Cup Sevens competition that was held in Dubai in March 2009. Later that year, she was invited by World Rugby to become a member of the bid team that successfully campaigned for the inclusion of rugby sevens in the Olympics. She also captained the Wallaroos from 2006 to 2010, including at the 2010 Rugby World Cup where they achieved their best result of third place.

World Cup squads

Award winners

The following Australia players have been recognised at the World Rugby Awards since 2001:

Captains

Coaches

Updated As Of 14 September 2025

References

References

1. (12 April 2022). "Ballymore Update - April 2022". [[Queensland Reds.
2. Somerford, Ben. (8 January 2025). "Force signs Wallaroos superstar Ashley Marsters in Super W coup".
3. "Our History - Buildcorp Wallaroos".
4. Grey, Lachlan. (12 October 2024). "Champions: Wallaroos down 13-woman Scotland in WXV2 decider".
5. (12 October 2024). "WXV 2: Australia beat Scotland to claim title at first attempt".
6. Worthington, Sam. (2025-10-13). "Ex-Waratahs prop takes Wallaroos coaching reins".
7. Wasiliev, Nick. (2025-10-11). "Rugby Australia reaffirms commitment to Wallaroos, interim coaching staff update".
8. (4 August 2025). "Wallaroos announce squad for Rugby World Cup 2025".
9. (8 April 2025). "Injury boosts as Australia names squad for Women's RWC 2025".
10. (11 August 2025). "Sevens superstar Charlotte Caslick ruled out of Rugby World Cup squad".
11. Williamson, Nathan. (27 October 2021). "Wallaroos and Sevens legend Cheryl McAfee inducted into World Rugby Hall of Fame".
12. "Cheryl McAfee".
13. "Awards Roll of Honour - World Rugby".
14. (1 May 2025). "Nine Brumbies named for Wallaroos Test against Fiji".
15. (23 May 2024). "From novice to leader: Michaela Leonard's remarkable rise to Wallaroos captain".
16. (16 May 2023). "Piper Duck announced as 2023 Wallaroos captain".
17. (21 June 2019). "Amazing Grace: New Wallaroos captain's rapid rise to the top". The Sydney Morning Herald.
18. (13 August 2018). "Kiwi-born Liz Patu named new Wallaroos skipper". The Sydney Morning Herald.
19. (5 May 2022). "Eleven new faces in Wallaroos team as frantic World Cup race begins". The Age.
20. (26 August 1994). "Wallaroos will have a few surprises". The Canberra Times.
21. (16 July 1995). "Aust slips in Otago". The Canberra Times.
22. (1998). "Teams: Australia".
23. (2002). "Women's Rugby World Cup: Pool A".
24. (26 June 2017). "Team Profile: Australia".
25. Decent, Tom. (13 February 2018). "New Wallaroos coach Dwayne Nestor says hosting 2021 Women's Rugby World Cup would be a 'fairytale'". Fairfax.
26. (14 September 2021). "Jay Tregonning appointed Wallaroos coach".
27. (12 December 2023). "Yapp makes history as new Wallaroos head coach". [[BBC Sport]].
28. (12 December 2023). "Wallaroos announce Jo Yapp as new full-time head coach". [[Rugby Australia]].