Jo Yapp named Wallaroos head coach in historic appointment

England’s Jo Yapp will become the first female head coach of a senior Australian football team after being named as Wallaroos boss, replacing Jay Tregonning.

Yapp will take charge of the women’s national team until at least the end of 2025, replacing Jay Tregonning. She becomes the only female head coach of an Australian senior national team in a major football code, having played 70 times for England, including at three Rugby World Cups, and captaining her nation to the 2006 final.

Since ending her playing career in 2009, the former halfback has developed an impressive background in rugby coaching and high-performance sport.

She spent five years as head coach of the England under-20s women, was director of women’s rugby at Exeter University for eight years, and England women’s senior backs coach in the 2015 Six Nations.

“It is a great honour to be appointed head coach of a proud rugby nation such as Australia,” Yapp said.

“I have fond recollections of battling Australia as a player, and you cannot help but be impressed by the strides the Wallaroos have made in the past couple of years.

“For a semi-professional team to reach the knockout stages of the World Cup last year, and to then finish third in the WXV tournament this year is a huge testament to the talent in the country.”

Rugby Australia CEO Phil Waugh is eager to see Yapp use her experience with the Wallaroos.

“This appointment is a crucial one as we work towards our goal of continuing to grow women’s rugby in Australia,” Waugh said.

“It is a huge opportunity for our game as we continue to grow sustainably as investment increases in the coming years.

“We now have our first ever full-time coach of the Wallaroos, we have hired our first women’s high-performance manager, and we are seeing continual year-on-year growth in participation of women and girls in the community.”

Waugh on Monday indicated the appointment of a new men’s high-performance director was imminent and that a replacement for Eddie Jones, who dramatically quit just 10 months into a five-year contract, would hopefully follow early next year.