A new and exciting chapter in the history of women’s sport is about to take off with The Maynard School, the oldest girls’ school in the country, collaborating with the newly formed Exeter Chiefs Women’s side.
Set to be part of the elite Premier 15s competition, the Chiefs side – who will come under the guidance of former England internationals Susie Appleby and Amy Garnett – are ready to break new ground and establish themselves as a growing force within the English Women’s game, all with the backing of the region’s premier independent school for girls.
“We pride ourselves on our reputation of being #MadeforGirls and, as soon as we heard that Exeter Chiefs would be expanding into women’s rugby, we knew that we wanted to be a part of such a pivotal moment in sport here in the West Country. As the oldest girls’ school in the country and, indeed, the reigning South West Independent Secondary School of the Year (The Sunday Times), with our own excellent track record in the sports arena as well as the classroom, we knew forming a partnership with the Chiefs Women would be the perfect match,” said Sarah Dunn, Headmistress at The Maynard School.
“It is such a very proud moment to have one of the top teams in the country bearing The Maynard logo on their sleeves and we shall all be avidly supporting them in all of their matches.
“As a part of the partnership, we are thrilled that the Chiefs Women have agreed to act as our rugby coaches at the school with the aim being to create our own teams, providing our talented students with the opportunity to become future Chiefs team members. Work is already underway with this and our girls have been extremely lucky already to have experienced superb coaching under the expert guidance of Susie and Amy with lots more to look forward to in the future. Most importantly, we know that this partnership will be inspirational to all of our students; that if you can dream it, you can do it!
“It goes without saying that we shall be backing the Chiefs Women every step of the way and we wish them the very best of luck for many successful seasons ahead.”
This exciting new collaboration for the South West is indicative of women’s solidarity at its best and has all the ability to become history in the making with a wealth of West Country-based talent, as well as a host of international names, having already been signed up as the Chiefs look to make an instant impact.
“Women’s sport has never been so popular and here at the Chiefs we are excited at what can be achieved by our team entering into the top tier of the women’s game in this country. Setting up a squad like this, particularly during a pandemic like we are in currently, could not be done without the fantastic support we have been shown by our key sponsors,” said Lisa Duncan, Sales & Marketing Director for the Exeter Chiefs.
