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#Post#: 157360--------------------------------------------------
Smaller ball for women makes it 'harder to do my job'
DIR By: Rugbycat
Date: September 7, 2026, 8:13 am
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England will play Australia, Canada and New Zealand in the next
three weeks and, like all the world's top women's players, they
have some new equipment: a smaller ball.
During September and October's WXV Global Series, World Rugby is
trialling a size 4.5 ball - about 3% smaller than the size five
used in the men's game, but the same weight.
Their introduction has not been without controversy and for
England hooker May Campbell, responsible for throwing the ball
in at the line-out, told BBC Sport it can go "a bit skew-whiff".
One of England's kickers, Helena Rowland, has found a much
bigger margin for error with the smaller ball, saying: "If you
get it slightly wrong, the difference is massive."
The fly-half says England players have noticed passes "dying",
falling to the floor earlier than expected, "which they wouldn't
have done previously".
Not all feedback has been negative. Wales wing Lisa Neumann is a
fan, saying "it's changed the game" for her passing because of
improved grip on the ball.
The thinking behind the trial is that the smaller ball will suit
women's physiology and improve their skillset. In other sports,
like basketball, women use a smaller ball, and in athletics
sprint hurdles are lower for females.
But Rowland says she has never felt "hindered" by playing with
the same size ball as in men's rugby.
'Harder to do my job'
Players with a specific skillset may find the change harder than
others. Hookers must throw in at a line-out, scrum-halves are
the most frequent passers and fly-halves the most regular
kickers.
Rowland explained: "We've learned for however long how to kick
with a size five.
"So I've had 13-odd years of doing that and training my routine
and trying to nail that and get as much consistency as I can.
"So it's about, I suppose, trying to pack all those years of
training and all those kicks into a four- or five-week block to
get used to it, to then go out on to the world stage."
Rowland added that she has not "necessarily seen any positives",
saying: "I know some of the girls have said that from an offload
perspective, it's maybe made them more confident.
"But for me, it hasn't. I don't think there's enough of a change
in the ball for me to be able to be running around with it in
one hand and offloading left, right and centre.
"I haven't necessarily found any of the positive impacts. I've
just found it a bit harder to do my job."
A World Rugby spokesperson said everyone involved in the WXV
Global Series, including players, coaches and match officials,
would have their views taken into account "with equal value"
through surveys.
John Mitchell, England's head coach, has said "it's too early"
to judge the impact of the smaller ball, and conclusions would
have to be drawn after the world champions' opening three Tests
in September.
Some England players were given a size 4.5 ball to practise with
in the off-season and Campbell says "there's no point in
complaining about it", given every side in the WXV Global Series
will be in the same position.
But she adds: "I feel like a lot of us don't know how it's going
to change the game, and kind of the reason behind it changing
and the data behind it.
"It's just this decision has kind of just happened that we're
now trialling it at the top level."
Inconsistency in shape
One area of concern for the England players is the ball changing
shape.
Campbell says they "played around" with how much the ball was
blown up, adding: "In previous weeks it was actually a bit
fatter, and then this week it definitely feels smaller."
Rowland agrees, saying: "There needs to be a bit more done in
terms of how the balls are made. We had some new balls today
versus the ones we've had for the last three weeks [and the
difference] is massive.
"If you've been training with an old ball that's fat to then go
into a game and it's a completely different shape, actually that
makes a massive difference as well, which I think is something
that you don't necessarily find so much in the size five."
The ball has already been trialled in the Under-18s and
Under-20s Women's Six Nations as well as the HSBC Sevens Series.
Rowland says she would "love to see the data on if it actually
has made a difference".
It seems a fair request, and is one that BBC Sport put to World
Rugby, but we did not receive any data.
A spokesperson said: "The balls haven't been used in the
international XVs environment yet so there isn't directly
comparable data to share with players either directly or via
their unions.
"Once we've built up a large enough data set of player
responses, match official responses and game data, we'll publish
the results, so it'll be available to players, unions, the
International Rugby Players Association, coaches, match
officials, the media and everyone else."
Some players are frustrated as they feel they have become guinea
pigs on the global stage. To compound that frustration, they
will then return to their clubs where the league season will be
played with a size five ball once again.
BBC Sport asked World Rugby when the trial period is likely to
conclude, and were told: "We'll be able to assess our position
on women's 15s once the international window has started.
"This will allow for completion of the WXV tournaments and full
analysis in early 2027. The evidence to date suggests that
further exposure produces greater results."
While it looks like players and coaches will get to see the data
in early 2027, any wider outcomes or decisions might take
longer.
HTML https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/articles/cwyz72pp22yo
#Post#: 157371--------------------------------------------------
Re: Smaller ball for women makes it 'harder to do my job'
DIR By: deadlyfrom5yardsout
Date: September 8, 2026, 1:04 am
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Is it televised?
#Post#: 157372--------------------------------------------------
Re: Smaller ball for women makes it 'harder to do my job'
DIR By: deadlyfrom5yardsout
Date: September 8, 2026, 1:09 am
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HTML https://www.wheresthematch.com/Rugby-Union/England-Womens.asp
#Post#: 157375--------------------------------------------------
Re: Smaller ball for women makes it 'harder to do my job'
DIR By: Rugbycat
Date: September 8, 2026, 3:11 am
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--- Quote from: deadlyfrom5yardsout link ---
>
> Is it televised?
>
--- End Quote ---
England v Australia
WXV Global Series
15:00, 12 September
CorpAcq Stadium
Watch on iPlayer
#Post#: 157376--------------------------------------------------
Re: Smaller ball for women makes it 'harder to do my job'
DIR By: deadlyfrom5yardsout
Date: September 8, 2026, 3:19 am
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Right. So "Wheres the Match" not reliable then!
#Post#: 157377--------------------------------------------------
Re: Smaller ball for women makes it 'harder to do my job'
DIR By: deadlyfrom5yardsout
Date: September 8, 2026, 3:25 am
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Where to watch Red Roses v Australia
Where
When
Kick-off
Where to watch
They go into the game, which will be shown live on England
Rugby's YouTube channel and BBC iPlayer, on a 38-game winning
run that includes winning the World Cup and 2026 Guinness
Women's Six Nations.
#Post#: 157378--------------------------------------------------
Re: Smaller ball for women makes it 'harder to do my job'
DIR By: Camquin
Date: September 8, 2026, 4:09 am
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If a smaller ball makes kicking harder - then it might be good
for the men's game. We may see more running rugby and less kick
chase.
#Post#: 157379--------------------------------------------------
Re: Smaller ball for women makes it 'harder to do my job'
DIR By: Rugbycat
Date: September 8, 2026, 7:03 am
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--- Quote from: Camquin link ---
>
> If a smaller ball makes kicking harder - then it might be good
for the men's game. We may see more running rugby and less kick
chase.
>
--- End Quote ---
Hard to tell until Gilbert can make two batches that are the
same shape and size.
#Post#: 157381--------------------------------------------------
Re: Smaller ball for women makes it 'harder to do my job'
DIR By: FrostAndFire
Date: September 8, 2026, 11:52 am
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Smaller balls make all our jobs more difficult.
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