Scottish Rugby introduce new Women’s Performance and Pathway system as Cruikshank appointed as first National Academy Manager

The new high performance pathway, a single and aligned system, will aim to grow the game and to develop world-class talent, in order to see success at grassroots, domestic and international levels.

Following a review that was carried out with internal and external stakeholders and led by Head of Women’s Performance and Pathways Andy Rhys-Jones, the new pathway system has been structured with the five key principles at its core:

• To have one aligned and connected pathway from community to elite level with defined objectives at each stage
• To have strong foundations, investing in infrastructure and programmes to enable long-term and sustainable success
• To grow and strengthen the base, supporting clubs and schools to enhance player development, including conditioning and skills, building a stronger foundation for the game
• To accelerate development and provide targeted, high-quality support for top players, with core performances services in place
• To create a collaborative and accessible system and to remove barriers, enabling fluid entry and exit points, and to build shared ownership across stakeholders

Similarly to the men’s game, a new National Talent Pathway (NTP) has been introduced with three phases at the U16, U17 and U18 ages, replacing the former Regional Training Centres.

Another new addition is the National Academy Programme (NAP) which will support the development of players aged 18-23. There will be opportunities within both the NTP and the NAP stages for players to represent Scotland at age-grade level.

There will be dedicated leaders for both programmes with managers in place, with the further investment in the system seeing the appointment of Claire Cruikshank as the first Women’s National Academy manager.

Claire brings with her a wealth of experience from her time at Edinburgh University as Head of Women’s Rugby, international coaching appointments, as well as many years within the pathway at Scottish Rugby, most recently as Edinburgh Rugby Women’s head coach.

The final step in the pathway is the National Central Programme. Established in August 2025, and based at Oriam High Performance Centre, the programme which is led by national team coaches, provides a daily high performance environment for our contracted players who will represent Edinburgh Rugby and Glasgow Warriors in Celtic Challenge.

Both the NCP and the NAP will not only act as feeders for the Celtic Challenge clubs, Edinburgh Rugby and Glasgow Warriors, but will also offer opportunities with great British 7s.

Scottish Rugby Performance Director, David Nucifora, said: “This system is designed to ensure players are fully prepared to transition into Scotland Women and meet the demands of the international environment.

“Our aspirations for the pathway is to see an increased quality of players across all levels as well as an improved competitiveness of domestic pro-teams.

“We have opportunities to prove ourselves on the world stage both within the new WXV Global series, as well as the Rugby World Cups in 2029 and 2033. Bringing in changes to our pathways now, at this stage in the World Cup cycle is designed to put ourselves in the best place possible to excel at these tournaments.

“Not only do we hope to see success on the international stage but to also grow participation to create a thriving community game, with more playing opportunities.”

Head of Women’s Performance and Pathways, Andy Rhys-Jones, added: “I am excited to see the new performance system and programmes get underway and we will be announcing players involved in coming weeks.

“Bringing in experienced leaders, like Claire Cruikshank, is key to ensuring the success of these programmes and I am confident that she will bring invaluable expertise to the role.

“Claire has a wealth of experience in player development and a clear understanding of what is required to help players progress through the pathway.

“Our aim is to create one aligned and connected pathway from community to elite level, with clear objectives at each stage, while investing in strong foundations, infrastructure and programmes that will support long-term and sustainable success.

“Clubs, colleges, universities, the Arnold Clark Premiership, the U16-U18 Inter-district and Pro-alignment programmes will continue to play an important role in the talent identification throughout the pathway.”

Scottish Rugby’s Women’s Pathway is proudly supported by Vodafone. Since 2024, Vodafone has supported the growth of the women’s game in Scotland through technology, connectivity and landmark events.