Our U18s bring together girls from School Years 12 and 13 and represent the final stage of age-grade rugby before making that all-important move into the senior women’s game.

At this level, the rugby is competitive, physical and increasingly tactical. Training is designed not only to help the girls perform at their best now, but also to prepare them for the next stage of their rugby journey.

There is a strong focus on position-specific development, set pieces, attacking and defensive structures, game management, decision-making and physical conditioning. Players are encouraged to take greater ownership of their rugby, understand their individual strengths and responsibilities and become confident making decisions under pressure.

There is also a greater expectation around commitment, communication and personal responsibility. Turning up for training, supporting teammates and being available for fixtures all matter when you’re part of a squad. We want our U18s to set the standards for the younger Unicorns coming through behind them.

Fixtures provide the opportunity to enjoy competitive rugby and test themselves against strong opposition. We want our girls to be ambitious, challenge themselves and absolutely want to win, while never losing sight of the values and team spirit that have brought them this far.

But U18s is also a hugely important transition year.

Our aim is to help every player continue playing rugby beyond the Unicorns and make the move into senior women’s rugby as smoothly and confidently as possible. Whether that pathway is within our own club, university rugby or elsewhere in the women’s game, we want our girls to leave age-grade rugby excited about what comes next.

And while their time as an age-grade player may be coming to an end, being an Unicorn doesn’t.

The friendships, experiences and memories made through girls’ rugby stay with you long after the final whistle. We hope our U18s continue to be part of the club, support the younger girls coming through and remain part of the Unicorns family for many years to come.

Everything we do is underpinned by England Rugby’s core values of Teamwork, Respect, Enjoyment, Discipline and Sportsmanship – TREDS, and our U18s are expected to lead by example and represent those values both on and off the pitch.

Play hard, back each other and enjoy your final years of age-grade rugby – then take everything you’ve learnt with you into the senior game. Once an Unicorn, always an Unicorn!