A RUGBY team is looking for players of all abilities as it seeks to build a squad for the season ahead.

The Gosford All Blacks Women side was reborn just over a year ago by captain Vicky Carpenter, and has since gone from strength to strength.

Initially a group of mainly those aged over 40 with no previous experience in rugby union, the team now boasts a squad of more than 20 players with an increasing diversity of skills and fitness levels.

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The group is now searching for more players at its Allianz Inner Warrior camp on Monday at 7pm.

Beki Goodwin, director of women’s rugby at Gosford All Blacks, told this newspaper: “You’ve got the Red Roses, who did really well in the World Cup last year, and we’ve got really good grassroots rugby locally as well.

“On Monday from 7pm, anyone is welcome to come. There’ll be non-contact rugby and fitness exercises with mini games.

“It’s for anyone to join and we say to come three or four times before joining, and then decide if they want to join for good.

“It’s something I never in a million years thought I would do, and you might just find yourself coming and falling in love with rugby.”

Allianz Inner Warrior camps are designed as an introduction to rugby for all levels of experience, from those who have never played to those who want to get back involved.

The camps are part of an RFU programme which has helped introduce more than 25,000 women and girls to rugby since 2017.

With England hosting the Rugby World Cup in 2025, the aim is to reach 100,000 registered female players nationally by 2027.

Gosford All Blacks Women have entered the Inner Warrior Series this year, a development league which allows the players to improve their skills.

Goodwin said: “We formed last year and had some ball games, got our fitness up, and understood the basic principles of rugby.

“We’ve been playing Ready 4 Rugby, which is the rules of rugby but with no tackling.

“We’re in a development league, so for each game you agree with the other team what level of contact you have.

“Our strapline is that we’re a team for everyone at Gosford. We were in the forty plus age bracket and playing non-contact rugby when we started this, and although for the squad we want to encourage younger players with experience too, there are some members who come just to train.

“We’re looking to build a squad up for the games, and we’ve got 21 players at the moment.”

For more information, visit the Gosford All Blacks page on Facebook.