With the appointment of Sione Fukofuka as the new Scotland women’s head coach now confirmed “the journey towards Australia 2029 looks exciting”, says Scottish Rugby’s director of performance David Nucifora.
Australian Fukofuka’s appointment was confirmed on Wednesday morning and he brings a decade of experience across international women’s and men’s rugby teams to the table. This began with a coaching role within the Australian youth women’s sevens team and then the Australian men’s sevens team in 2019.
A trained teacher, Fukofuka joined the Australia women’s national team as assistant coach in 2021 before moving to his most recent role as head coach of the USA women’s national team in 2023, a post which he held through to the culmination of the World Cup in England a few months ago.
Everything from now onwards is building up to the next World Cup in Australia in four years’ time while the new groundbreaking global women’s calendar, which now includes home and away matches in September and October alongside the Guinness Women’s Six Nations tournament, as part of an upweighted international schedule kicks off in 2026.
The next Scotland women’s Test is due to be away to Wales on April 11 in the Six Nations opener with Fukofuka set to join Scottish Rugby in January, subject to visa, and will be relocating to be based in Edinburgh.
Nucifora said: “After a competitive recruitment process, it is great to be able to welcome Sione into our women’s programme.
“The experience that he brings from coaching international women’s teams was what we were looking for take our women’s programme forward.
“In October we announced an increase in contracts and with additional players also joining them in our central programme in Oriam which is fully underway Sione is joining at a pivotal time. Our national team is in a strong position after the Rugby World Cup and with Sione able to bring in new experience the journey towards Australia 2029 looks exciting.”
Scottish Rugby chief executive Alex Williamson added: “I am delighted to welcome Sione to Scottish Rugby at such an exciting time for the development of, not only our national team, but the whole of the girls and women’s game in Scotland. Sione brings many years of experience within women’s international rugby and we want to build the strongest possible coaching set up to take us forward at this crucial time.
“In the months since our Rugby World Cup quarter-final, we have contracted more players than ever before with many of them benefiting from our first ever central programme at Oriam. Gemma Fay has taken up her new role as managing director of women’s rugby and her strategic direction will complement the skills Sione brings. With head of women’s performance and pathways Andy Rhys Jones also starting in the new year we now have a highly talented leadership group for the whole women’s game for the first time.”
Previously Nucifora said the governing body wanted to appoint two assistant coaches to work alongside the new head coach, the managing director of women’s rugby and the head of women’s performance and pathways, but nothing has been confirmed re those posts as yet.
Sione Fukofuka is pictured – thanks to World Rugby