Rugby club’s first female president recognised as pioneer by national body

A CLUB president has been recognised as a female pioneer in English rugby.

Yasmin Miller, the first female president of Reading RFC in Sonning, is one of the 25 women recognised by the Rugby Football Union.

Ms Miller, 53, who lives in Wokingham, joined the club in 1997. She started playing rugby when she was 26 after attending university, becoming a dedicated tight-head prop, a position she held for her entire 18-year playing career.

After knee cartilage issues brought her career to an end, she dedicated her time as a volunteer to the club. Over the last 28 years, she has served as treasurer of the women’s section, club secretary and organiser of the summer music and beer festival. In 2019, she became the club’s president.

Ms Miller said: “The president is a figurehead and the face of the club in many ways. I think it displays a really important message to the rest of the rugby community about how women and girls are valued and supported in our club.

“I wasn’t expecting the recognition at all — it came completely out of the blue. Personally, it’s a huge honour to be recognised on a national scale, among 24 other inspiring women, and I hope it represents what I’ve done for the club for the better part of 30 years, both playing and supporting the club in other ways.”

The club, which celebrated the 35th anniversary of its women’s team and the 25th anniversary of its girls’ section this year, has a “good legacy” of developing talent, such as Alex Matthews, a winning member of the Rugby World Cup this year.

Ms Miller said: “The club has a really good legacy, embracing the wider community, especially young girls and women, outside of men’s and boys’ [games] from quite early on. That’s important to me because not only do I love rugby but I want it to be available to anybody who wants to play it, breaking down those barriers.”

Ms Miller still misses playing. She said: “It must be nearly 10 years since I gave it up and every time I see the women, men or kids running out there, I want to be out there joining in. I love it.

“I’ve always loved team sports. All my life, I’ve done various different team sports where you have to rely on your team-mates and develop a real team spirit, camaraderie and close friendships but, to me, rugby transcends all of that.”