North Sydney Bears Launch Women’s Rugby League Team

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The North Sydney Bears are pleased to announce the official launch of their inaugural open women’s team to participate in the Harvey Norman NSW Women’s Premiership competition in season 2018.

This exciting and new initiative is proudly supported by the Norths Group who are extremely passionate about strengthening women’s sport in the local community.

Norths Group CEO Luke Simmons said they are proud to be associated with a women’s rugby league team. “This is a great day for the club, women make up over 50% of our membership base and we look forward to supporting women in our community even further.

“As soon as the Bears presented the opportunity to get involved we believed it was a no-brainer as connecting with women is one of our goals throughout our community. This is another initiative that will increase women in sport and engagement to ensure the sustainability of all codes across the world”, said Simmons.

The Bears have also proudly announced Ben Gardiner as Head Coach. Ben is very familiar with the Bears culture and brand from his stint coaching the Men’s ISP NSW Cup over the last few seasons and understands the significant importance of this day.

Bears General Manager, Greg Florimo, said” I’m really proud to be part of this historic day for the Bears and look forward to contributing and enhancing the women’s game. Our preparation is going really well, we have some quality players with a very good mix of experience coming from a range of codes. The standard of the women’s game is improving and I look forward to seeing the Bears supporters coming on board in getting behind our first women’s team”.

The Bears have recruited new players for 2018 including experienced player Barbara Waddell.

“We are really looking forward to being part of this season, preparation has been really good and getting to know the girls and understanding combinations is really important and exciting. This whole new competition has allowed women to play in a more professional environment which is great”, said Waddell.

Local girl Isabella Parkman is also one of the Bears newest recruits. “The pathway looks incredible and the support from all the Bears staff has been fantastic. Ben’s tough but fair and I look forward to the season ahead, including playing with Barb who I have enjoyed playing with in the past”, said Parkman.

“This is a community club of which I have been a part of as a local resident and understand the importance and value of the Bears brand in this local area”