Asia Rugby Women’s Championship 2019

With a number of men’s Asia Rugby Championships already being decided in 2019, we have tried to find out more about the Asia Rugby Women’s Championship 2019.

From what we had heard, there is speculation there will be a one-off test between Japan and Hong Kong in 2019 in the top division.

The winner of Division 1 (between Singapore, Philippines, India an China) will then compete in a playoff game against Kazakhstan in 2019 to determine who will be promoted to play in Asia Rugby Women’s Championship in 2020 and earn the right to try and qualify for the Women’s Rugby World Cup in 2021.

We had reached out to Asia Rugby but all they could confirm at the time is the Division 1 teams and matches which have now been confirmed on their website. In addition, they confirmed the process for 2020 ARWC and the road to the World Cup.

Premier Division ARWC 2019

Only two teams competed in the last Premier Division of the Asia Rugby Women’s Championship.  In 2017, Japan and Hong Kong played a home and away format with Japan running out winners with big scores of 58-0 and 60-19.

We are still waiting to see if this division will go ahead in 2019.

Division 1 ARWC 2019

Last year, India, Singapore and the Philippines competed in Division 1 of the Asia Rugby Women’s Championship. The tournament took place at Queenstown Stadium in Singapore and the hosts claimed the division title in the final game.

The tournament was a historical one, as India played in their first-ever international XVs rugby test matches.

In 2019, China will also take part in addition to India, Singapore and the Philippines and as is now confirmed, the tournament will also serve as a Women’s Rugby World Cup 2021 (New Zealand) qualification pathway.

The Philippines will be hosting the ARWC 2019 at the Southern Plains Field in Laguna.

2019 Fixtures

Round #1

• Date: 19th June 2019
• Game #1: Singapore vs China
• Game #2: Philippines vs India

Round #2

• Date: 22nd June 2019
• Winner game 1 vs winner game 2

Venue: Southern Plains Field, Laguna, Philippines

The winner will indeed head off to play Kazakhstan at a later date to see who will be promoted to the top flight of the ARWC for 2020. The winner of the ARWC in 2020 will then earn the right to compete in New Zealand at the Women’s Rugby World Cup 2021 as the Asian representative.

2018 results Division 1 ARWC

• Singapore 30–5 India
• India 5–19 Philippines
• Singapore 19–10 Philippines

World Rugby standings

• Japan (16)
• Kazakhstan (17)
• Hong Kong (23)
• Singapore (33)
• India (47)
• Philippines (53)

Source: World Rugby

There is still a lack of transparency over how these specific women’s rugby teams are selected for the ARWC. For example, Thailand is ranked 34th so why do teams ranked lower than them compete in Division 1 and have the chance to get promoted?  Also, why does Kazakhstan not need to qualify like the teams in Division 1? We have asked Asia Rugby for clarification on these topics.

The World Rugby rankings are explained here but it doesn’t seem to address these issues.

You can read more about the men’s 2019 Asia Rugby Championship winners to date here.