The Rugby Football Union for Women (RFUW) would like reiterate that safety at the Regional Festival in Lichfield over the weekend was comprehensively planned and executed. Many of the statements and comments in the article appearing in the Daily Mail, which appeared on 12th May, give a false impression of the course of events, and the negative press that has been printed about what was a hugely successful event is very disappointing.

The Regional Festival is an annual event organised by the RFUW. The 2004 Festival saw 600 girls and women competing over two days. A total of 11 girls required medical aid as a result of injuries sustained in play over the course of the weekend, but the majority of hospital admissions were of a precautionary nature and the players were released on the same day. Just one player required overnight treatment.

Rosie Williams, RFUW Managing Director commented, "safety is taken very seriously in the sport of rugby, whether it be male or female players. Rugby is a contact sport, so we have to mitigate for any possible injuries. The safety of our athletes is paramount and we have put the structures in place to educate them with the necessary skills and techniques to reduce the risk of injury.

The injuries that occurred at the Regional Festival, were not uncommon in a tournament of that size. We feel strongly that the reporting of the event has been taken out of context."

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