Simon Middleton: Women in rugby need to be closer to conversions

The England head coach believes female rugby players should be allowed to convert from closer distances. Credit: Getty Images/Catherine Ivill

Simon Middleton, head coach of the Red Roses, thinks women rugby players should be allowed to take closer shots because they are not as strong as male kickers.

< p>England has the most depth when it comes to kicking in the Women's Six Nations Championship, but their chances in front of goal have been hit hard by Zoe Harrison, their first choice of attacking midfielder out of the entire Championship due to a knee injury.

< Holly Aitchison stepped up in Harrison's absence and impressed in the Red Roses' first two games, especially with her out-of-control kicking, but admitted in an interview with Telegraph Sport last week that her shot on goal "needs to be worked on."

England converted four of 10 conversions in the opening match against Scotland and four of 12 attempts in the second round match against Italy.

«Holly Aitchison kicked great against Italy, [but] she just doesn't have range,» Middleton said. “I think we need to slightly change the parameters of shots on goal for girls. [For] any attempt outside of the 15m line, they could potentially bring it [conversion] to the 15m line.

«If you think about things that could change the game for the better, it's a little unfair a game for female kickers, because shots on goal are largely based on strength.

"Obviously, there is time and technique. , but last week Holly hit the ball beautifully and dropped about five balls under the crossbar. It's really hard. Very few people have the punching power of Emma Sing or Emily Scarratt.”

Kicking women in rugby 'Women are not rewarded enough'

The reasons why women cannot jump as far as men are multifactorial, and physiological differences are believed to play a key role. In women, the pelvis is wider, which puts the abductors, the muscle group inside the thigh, at a mechanical disadvantage compared to men.

Men are also thought to generate four times as much force in the hip flexors, the muscles of the anterior thigh and more efficiently transfer energy from the trunk to the leg.

«I just think it's a bit of a foul play in terms of a game between men and women because it's so connected to strength,» Middleton continued. “This is just my opinion. You want to be rewarded for good skills and hard practice, and I don't think they are rewarded enough just because of physical limitations, which we know is a natural mismatch between male and female athletes.»

Marley Packer, the England captain, shared Middleton's sentiment but offered a more practical take on the matter. “It could be something that can be tweaked, but also we could just push the attempts a little closer to the posts for them,” she said, “but if that were to change, it would help because of the power difference that exists between male and female athletes.”

Emma Sing, who impressed in the Premier 15s for Gloucester-Hartpury this season with her long-range shots, was appointed as England's goalkeeper against Wales on a sold out Cardiff Arms Park on Saturday. Sing took over Aitchison's duties against Italy and landed two long-range shots.

"It was something to watch, watching her break the ball from the sideline at such a distance, but how do I let's say there are so few players in women's football who can do it, while every club in men's premier league and every international club in men's football has someone who can do it,» Middleton said.