A transgender woman rugby player in Canada who identifies as non-binary was named 'men’s hardest hitter' just last year according to her former team's Facebook page..Ash Davis was awarded the 'hardest hitter' during the 2022 Senior Awards Banquet. A Facebook post from Fergus Highlands RFC from December, 2022, shows Davis wearing a blue dress in the graphic naming him 'Men’s Hardest Hitter.'.Davis was reportedly removed from a match in June after allegedly injuring three female competitors..According to the governing body’s guidebook, rugby players in Canada “should be able to participate as the gender with which they identify and not be subject to requirements for disclosure of personal information beyond those required of cisgender athletes.”.Rugby Canada adopted the policy in 2019..“A veteran female rugby player, who plays for the Stoney Creek Camels senior women’s team, said she was hit so hard by Davis in a recent game, it felt like a man delivering the tackle,” The Toronto Sun reported..“But this player for the Fergus Highlanders Senior women’s Rugby team is considered a transitioning person — from male to female — and was cleared to compete in the women’s league.”.This transgender player, now known as Ash is said to have registered as a non-binary person who identifies as female and weighs up to 220 pounds..“I had never been hit like that before, even at the competitive women’s level,” said a player who faced Davis..“There was so much more brute force. There are women who are bigger than him, but no girl hits like that. This is a strong human.”.Diana Murphy, a friend of some of the players who recently faced Ash, tweeted: “Three women’s rugby players had to be removed from a game and treated for injuries from hits sustained by a transwoman” and that she feels “Trans have no place in women’s sports.”.Rugby Canada said there were no illegal hits, but sources who watched the game told the Toronto Sun Ash received a yellow card from the referee for a hit to the head of one female player..“Ash was pulled from the game. Players said they are not clear whether it was at the insistence of the referee or the Fergus coach,” The Toronto Sun said.
