Apart from physical aptitude, societal roles also play a large role. Says Susan Birrell in Women, Sport, and Culture, "it is also clear that sport is strongly associated with the male identity, with being popular and having friends. Rugby and football are archetypical here" (Birrell 35). The bonding stereotypes of the female gender are generally non-physical, and thus sports do not have as positive an association for women. As a result, of that percentage of women that are able to compete at the same level as men in contact sports never enter the arena in the first place.

Regardless of the reason, very few women get involved with contact sports, and practicality makes it difficult for those who are interested to be accommodated. Separate locker room facilities are necessary, and the team dynamics are altered fundamentally as the issue of sexual tension enters the scene. There are some who would...
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