The dedication and commitment of young rugby players, especially girls, outshine the lack of resources and under-financing issues faced by many of the school teams.

The backing from parents, family, and coaches is visible over the missing resources. Some of the teams are wearing just plain t-shirts when they should be having proper jerseys. For some teams, the shorts and the jerseys do not match. The socks are in an array of different colours.

For the girls, some are not even wearing boots, but they are inspired to don the national jumper one day, such is the commitment of the young players who were part of the Zone D finals rugby competition held at Wesley College on Friday.

Assistant coaches, Taimi Pepe and Tinei Aunei Ulufanua shared that their girls' team lacked resources during their preparation stages ahead of the competition like many other non-government-funded schools.

"We use some of the girls' shoes as cones because we sometimes can't get any cones for training," said Pepe.

"Whatever equipment is left after the boys use it, that is the equipment we use, which is usually just cones," added Pepe.

"It's not that we complain about not having any resources, but it would be helpful if we did have some for our girls," said Tinei.

The struggles of the secondary school teams reflect the true picture of the development of rugby in the country. While Lakapi Samoa has its grassroots programmes, the lack of resources and expertise provided to the young teams, especially the girls is one of the key reasons why development is not taking place.

This year Lakapi Samoa announced the re-establishment of the Samoa Women’s Rugby Union, however, it is still not clear how the union will be financed and how it will manage its affairs. Does this also mean that the development of women’s rugby will come under this union and not Lakapi Samoa anymore?

There is a vast disparity when it comes to the women’s game. It is seen at all levels including the national level. There has been unprecedented growth in women’s rugby all over the world and there is renewed commitment that includes financing from World Rugby.

This has to be tapped into and for starters, basic equipment has to be provided for all teams in Samoa especially in schools, because that is where rugby for many women starts from. Rugby has evolved for women as well.

Just like the men’s game, it is a professional sport and there are opportunities in it for the many young women who take the game up. There are chances for contracts with club teams abroad, there is a pathway for more young women to take up coaching and as match officials. There are also more women sports commentators as well.

The opportunities are there but it is about creating a pathway for the young women who are involved in it. It is as simple as providing tackling pads, cones and upskilling coaches. It is also about having more than one tournament for the girls.

All clubs should be encouraged to have a women’s team. This is the way women’s rugby should be headed. Rugby is a sport and like all sports, our young women who pick the oval ball game should be encouraged and the support has to be bigger. Families do provide that support, but a real wake up call is needed from the governing body in the country.

Who knows, if proper development takes place, the women could end up better ranked than the men.

World Rugby Chief of Women’s Rugby Sally Horrox said: “Women and girls are at the heart of World Rugby’s ambitious growth plan. The business case for investment in women's rugby is clear. We know through evidence-based research that women and girls represent the single biggest opportunity for growth over the next decade.

“Where unions have the will, and through Accelerate (a project to grow women’s rugby) we are partnering with between 15 and 20 for the next three years, to find the optimum way to accelerate sustainable growth. Together, we have a golden opportunity to raise standards on and off the field in the three-year sprint to an expanded Rugby World Cup 2025 in England via our new WXV competition. This will create a springboard for even greater growth over the next decade to Rugby World Cup 2033 in the USA and beyond.”