The historical first Gold Cup club rugby championship for women took place last week in Johannesburg and the Blue Bulls were represented by the Harlequins women’s team.

This achievement also meant that Harlequins was only one of three clubs in the country that have qualified for both the men’s and women’s Gold Cup competitions.

A few days before their departure for the tournament, the Harlequins team had a capping ceremony where they received special kit as representatives of the Bulls.

On this occasion, the players were also surprised by the presence of the remarkable Moira Flahive, pioneering rugby administrator in Ireland and current president of the Leinster Rugby Club, who was in South Africa with her team playing against the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld.

“The success of the Bulls Daisies, Springbok women and the World Cup have increased interest in the women’s game which we must exploit to recruit top athletes to our sport and grow our base. We are changing people’s lives and empowering women with our programs on various levels,” said the president of the Blue Bulls rugby union, Willem Strauss, when he wished the Quins women well before the tournament.

The Betway Women’s Club Championship, which featured 16 participating clubs – one from each of the 15 provincial unions, plus one wildcard – consisted of three days of rugby in a format similar to that of the Craven Week. The teams were split into two divisions of eight, based on their respective provinces’ participation in the Women’s Premier & First Division provincial competitions.

Quins’ ladies competed in the top premier division and their first match was against the Sharks’ top club, the Durban University of Technology (DUT). The team from Durban gave them a hard time, but after a very exciting match, the girls from Groenkloof won 26-19.

Unfortunately, they were less fortunate on day two and lost 13-29 to the eventual champions, Kwaru Rugby Club from the Eastern Cape.

On the final day, the Quins ladies still fought hard against the strong representative of WP, the Van der Stel Evergreens from Stellenbosch. This match ended in a 10-a-side draw and the Harlequins ladies were able to hold their heads high after the battle.

Although the Harlequins team – one of the pre-tournament favorites – unfortunately did not make it to the final, they did give a thorough account of themselves and the team was also honoured in another way. After the championship, a 2025 Betway Women’s Club Championship Dream Team was selected and Harlequins co-captain, Klarissa van der Linden, was named outside centre and vice-captain of this team.

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