Why wasn’t any member of the RF present at the women’s rugby World Cup final yesterday?

[Dustyhem952]

Honestly, I think it was a disgrace!

And an insult to our female players! And the entire team who worked so hard to get to be champions!

If the England’s men’s team had reached the final of the the World Cup, against a Commonwealth country no less, I bet someone would have turned up!

No doubt the team members will be invited to Windsor at some point but I think it’s a huge mid-step that no member of the RF could actually be bothered to travel to the stadium, sit in the stands, and actually cheer the Red Roses on!

Princess Anne often attends Scottish rugby matches. It would have meant so much to the women there if someone in the RF could have turned out for them. People clocked Mark Carney for Canada and could be seen literally looking around to see who was there for us!

Princess Catherine sent a message of support in advance and I have every sympathy with her if she is not well enough to attend a match, But if that was the case, someone in one of the offices at St James’s palace, to which we all collectively contribute a lot of money, should have clocked this situation and made other suitable plans!

Sorry Catherine and William, you can’t just pick and choose the events you want to attend like Wimbledon and Aston Villa matches!

Zara and Peter cannot be doing Royal duties because surely that would be Half In Half Out, given they have jobs, interests in companies all over the place. Peter has or had his own sports management co and also is a director of another co. Zara all sorts of interests

If someone is a patron of a big sport they should attend a final in my opinion. Especially women's sports which needs the exposure

@Needspaceforlego
I didn't include Peter and Zara because they have never been working Royals.
And would anyone turn up to watch Peter Phillips cut a ribbon?

Absolutely, and as previously explained, within the world of women’s rugby itself, this match was incredibly special as it was a third time lucky situation, Well, it wasn’t luck that made them the winner, but commitment and hard graft, but you know what I mean. England had come second twice previously so this was their year, and they were predicted to win! This should have been in the RF’s diary for months!

And their opponents, Canada, are a Commonwealth country, and the match featured immediately before the final involved New Zealand, another Commonwealth country.

There really was no sufficiently good excuse for a member of the RF not to attend. Really, genuinely disappointing and a very poor show.

I’m not a royalist but think of the easy Brownie points the RF could have accrued for themselves with just a few Instagram photos of the Royals enjoying watching the Canada team, the NZ team and the England team! All three within half an hour of Windsor! But they have created negativity instead.

I’m fed up of everyone moaning about what Kate should be doing. We (quite rightly) don’t know much about her health behind the scenes, It’s her private info. She could have any number of chronic illnesses or side effects from her treatment which require long term management of energy levels or have ups and downs. She certainly hasn’t done any sporty or strenuous engagements since she’s been ill. I have friends with chronic illnesses that you wouldn’t see when you met them, but actually they live with chronic pain or need days in bed to recover after a busy day. I think we all need to give her a break.

I’m fed up of everyone moaning about what Kate should be doing. We (quite rightly) don’t know much about her health behind the scenes, It’s her private info. She could have any number of chronic illnesses or side effects from her treatment which require long term management of energy levels or have ups and downs. She certainly hasn’t done any sporty or strenuous engagements since she’s been ill. I have friends with chronic illnesses that you wouldn’t see when you met them, but actually they live with chronic pain or need days in bed to recover after a busy day. I think we all need to give her a break.

@Soupandaroll
William could have stepped in. But he didn’t.

@Soupandaroll you do understand that we aren’t asking Kate to play a game of rugby, we were only asking that she sits and watches a game, and maybe hands out the medals afterwards?!

She managed to go to a previous game in the tournament, and also managed to sit through a much longer tennis final at Wimbledon. So it doesn’t seem like that is physically too much for her.

Yes, admittedly she may have been ill that day. But her social media post the day before certainly suggested that she was never planning on attending.

If there was a prior engagement, or she knew she wouldn’t be feeling up to it due to other engagements earlier that week, she should have made a proper apology and/or nominated someone else to attend in her stead.

I’m not anti-royal, far from it - I work for a charity with a royal patron (and fangirled like anything when they deigned to shake the hands of all the staff at an event a few years back ).

But I think it was poor, on this occasion, not to have attended the match.

The Prince and Princess of Wales each attended the rugby match of their respective nation (England and Wales) on 6th September. Interestingly, on each occasion the opposing side was a Commonwealth nation.

I suppose for a diary that is organised months in advance it's probably easier to schedule in a group game than a final you can't guarantee your team will be in (though I can also see an argument that says it would be good for one of them to present the cup).

It also occurred to me that given recent heightened security tensions there may have been a decision that attending the final was not advisable.

This thread has been going on for days. Catherine has completely endeared herself to the US. It's going to make a difference in trade between the two countries.

Was the rugby team upset? Should they not be playing for the glory of the game? Why should they care who are in the stands?

Rugby is not the gladitorial games in the Roman Colosseum. It isn't essential for Catherine to be present to decide who will live, die, or be rewarded.

Gosh, dramatic! Gladiators living or dying 😂

AFAIC women's sport needs all the boost it can get and I think she should have attended.

Of COURSE it isn't essential she attend but it was literally 20 minutes away and a Final ! What a boost it would have been

Why should they care who are in the stands?
Lol maybe make it no spectators then! Of course it matters

Her or him attending means it will least make headline news bringing much needed media attention and PR....after all isn't that what being a patron is also abojt...highlighting and brining attention to causes that otherwise would never get it.

after all isn't that what being a patron is also abojt...highlighting and brining attention to causes that otherwise would never get it.

Very good point,

We're constantly assured charity work and patronages are an important part of royal work then we find they CBA to trot a few miles down the road to support one virtually on the doorstep.

They can't have it both ways.

Interesting to have an American perspective. How will trade be affected?

yes would love to know how Kate is going to do that lol.

The US tariffs baseline against the EU are 15 percent. The US baseline tariffs against the UK are 10 percent. The baseline tariffs against Canada are 35 percent.

Trump operates by emotion. He's going after states that supported Harris and people, job, institutions that he views as leftist. If he doesn't like you, he goes after you. My state is seeing that now. My city may soon be affected.

He also really likes your royal family. He's very complimentary about William. Catherine is viewed as warm, caring, a good mother, and a supportive wife. Melania even liked her.

Look at this tariff rate chart. See how few countries are at 10 percent.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5ypxnnyg7jo

Interesting but off topic

The issue with a slimmed down Monarchy is there just are not that many working Riyals to go to events. 2 members have cancer or recovering from cancer. Other Royals are grieving after an older member the family died.

and there are very few working Royals Women to go to women’s sports or finals.

The issue with the current slimmed down monarchy forcibly brought about by flouncing, scandal and (sadly) illness is that it still apparently expects to and does rake in the same or increased income from the public purse as in its E2
heyday while delivering considerably less.

A return to a debated and fixed Civil List would go some way towards correcting the financial anomaly.

I would add also kudf deciding they want to do as much anymore cos they dont and arent. And they were not doing much before any illness came about.

Imagine going into work and basically deciding not to do much..so you think you would still keep your job if you did, let alone the same salary.

They can get away with it and they are.

They can claim they do invisible work but also have an army of staff.....who is actually doing that invisible work. As if William is there picking up the phone arranging catering, transport and so on. Of course he isnt. He isnt researching information and preparing briefing packs either. It's all bs.

I don't think they even pretend they're doing invisible work, they know they can get away with shirking. There's no one to question them

why can only women go to womens sport?

i agree they don't pretend but plenty of people, esp on this board think they do and you see that same old line trotted out about invisible work blah blah...feel like they say it to convince themselves more than anything

It'd be interesting to know where this notion they're beavering away at work so secret the plebs mustn't find out anything about it actually comes from.

It seems to have gained traction fairly recently. Some kind of pushback at the analysis of the Court Circular 'engagements' showing the acres of empty days at royal disposal?

Exactly! And some royalists on Mumsnet do fantastic PR for them on here! It doesn't wash with me mind, but I'm an old cynic 😂
🤣

A quick Google and recent info says whilst they don't live in with them they have a nanny, gardener and housekeeper. I mean alot of Welsh fsmiles have fbay so basically they aren't spending their time mowing the lawn or doing laundry or cleaning.

Then they have support and admi staff at Kensington Palace for the other stuff, they both have private secretaries whose job is orga use their schedules and their lives and the private secretaries ha e an assistant who help brief them etc.

So what work in secret are they doing?

Not like they have to re new their car insurance or house insurance, or look at their budget everytime a bill goes up nor do they even have to plan their days...its all handled for them. They turn up for whatever is in the diary. Much like ceo of a company and make decisions for kate what outfit out the 6 already picked out...she didnt spend time doing all the necessary background work taken to get to that point.