Middleton urges RFU to bring women into England’s coaching set-up

The departing head coach of England’s women’s rugby union team, Simon Middleton, says the time has come for the Rugby Football Union to “really go after female coaching”.

Middleton will step down from the position he has held since 2015 at the end of the upcoming Women’s Six Nations. The 57-year-old, whose successor is expected to be announced following the championship, feels a new voice is needed in the role.

While he is not involved in the recruitment process, he has urged the RFU to focus on bringing women into the coaching set-up.

“From an English point of view, now is the time to really go after the female coaching,” said the former dual-code player. “You’ve got a generation of players and a lot of them have lived through almost a decade of professional rugby.

“I know the contracts haven’t been full time for that long but there’s been a significant influence in terms of what professionalism looks like within the programme. A lot of players have lived through that now, so they are very well-prepared to step into coaching, if they choose to. From that point of view, there is some excellent coaching potential and we’ve got to grow that side of it.”

Middleton guided England to World Cup finals in 2017 and 2022, where they were beaten by New Zealand on each occasion. He has led the Red Roses to five Women’s Six Nations titles, including four grand slams, and set a record-breaking 30-match winning run last year.

His imminent departure was announced last week following conversations with the RFU’s performance director, Conor O’Shea. Middleton says it is “absolutely critical” the governing body’s recruitment drive is a success, with succession planning having been in progress for the past 18 months.

“Conor had been asking