Rugby chiefs have insisted they are supporting financially stricken Samoa “appropriately” at the Women’s World Cup after it emerged players from the Pacific island nation had raised funds to cover domestic bills while taking part in the tournament.
Samoa are an amateur side, whose squad includes a police officer, primary school teacher and a property manager.
By contrast, tournament hosts and favourites England, a fully professional outfit, have players on contracts ranging from GBP39,000 ($52,000) to GBP48,000.
The Red Roses thrashed Samoa 92-3 when the teams met in a World Cup pool match last weekend.
World Rugby have said they are doing all they can to help emerging nations such as Samoa by providing them with access to specialist coaches and bringing in former Test referee Alain Rolland to help reduce their penalty counts.
Event organisers are also covering the costs of flights and accommodation for all teams during the Women’s World Cup.
“Everything that when the teams arrive here, from obviously flying over here, that’s covered by the tournament,” World Cup managing director Sarah Massey told a Twickenham press conference on Tuesday.
“Everything once they’re in-country is covered by the tournament.”
The challenges facing rugby in cash-strapped Samoa were laid bare last year when it’s men’s side pulled out of a planned tour of Europe over fears going ahead with the trip would lead to bankruptcy for the national governing body.
World Rugby head of women’s rugby Sally Horrox, speaking alongside Massey, said: “Through the way we support teams, we will fund them to get here and to compete in the competition.
“We want our athletes, particularly in a World Cup environment, to be as well supported as we possibly can…So in that sense, we know that we are looking after Samoa and all of our teams appropriately.”
Horrox added: “We understand that they (Samoa) take very seriously their responsibilities to their families back home, and they are certainly seeking to raise funds for their families back home.”
But even Canada, second in the women’s rugby world rankings and a genuine challenger to defending champions New Zealand and England, had to crowd-fund the last $1 million of the $3.2 million they needed to compete at the World Cup.
Horrox, however, said World Rugby was working with countries such as Canada to increase investment and unlock government funding, “which absolutely is the focus for us in terms of financial sustainability and our work over the next four years”.
