Lionesses beat Cameroon to qualify for newly launched World Rugby WXV 3 Championship

The women’s national rugby 15s side Kenya Lionesses thrashed Cameroon 52-3 in their final match at the 2023 Rugby Africa Women’s Cup to qualify for the newly launched World Rugby WXV third tier Championship.

Reeling off a 48-0 humbling against South Africa in their second match in the tournament held in Antanarivo, Madagascar, the Dennis Mwanja coached side bounced back in style as they recorded the empahtic victory to finish second in the four team competition consequently earning their place in the third tier competition.

South Africa, on the other hand, were crowned continental champions when they completed their campaign with a 79-8 victory over host nation Madagascar to seal their spot in the new WXV 2 tournament which will be hosted in South Africa later this year.

The South Africans had a superb campaign. They scored a total of 214 points and only conceded eight in their matches against Cameroon (87-0), Kenya (48-0) and Madagascar (79-8).

Kenya on their part finished the campaign with two wins over Cameroon and Madagascar (29-20).

WXV 1 will be hosted in New Zealand (21 October - 4 November), WX2 in South Africa (14-28 October) while the host for WXV 3 (14-28 October) is set to be named once the participating team picture becomes clearer in order to maximise attendance, reach and impact.

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WXV - How does it work?

WXV 1

WXV 1 will consist of six teams and be played in a cross-pool format. Participating teams will include the top three teams from the Women’s Six Nations (Europe) and the top three teams from the World Rugby Pacific Four Series (Rugby Americas North/Oceania).

Each team will play three matches. There will be no relegation or promotion for the first two years.

WXV 2

The WXV 2 competition will consist of six teams, playing in a cross-pool format. Participating teams for 2023 will include two teams from Europe, the fourth-placed team from the Pacific Four Series, alongside one team from Oceania, Asia and Africa.

The sixth-placed regional position in the WXV 2 competition at the end of each season will be relegated to WXV 3.

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WXV 3

WXV 3 will also be played as a cross-pool format, made up of six teams: two from Europe and one from Asia, Oceania, Africa and South America.

The regional position of the winner of WXV 3 will be promoted to WXV 2 and the bottom team will play off against the next best ranked side, according to the World Rugby Women’s Rankings powered by Capgemini on the Monday after the final match of WXV that year.