The rise of women's rugby in New Zealand is something we should all be proud of.

Since 2012, playing numbers have nearly doubled from when women made up nine per cent of total playing numbers to this year's record total of nearly 18 per cent.

Across New Zealand, it is the increase in girls taking up the game that is driving the numbers playing rugby, as the trend for teenage boys to stop playing continues.

The drop off in male teenagers continues with a 4.8 per cent drop in the 13-20 age bracket, which contributed to an overall drop of 1.8 per cent among male participation.

But this year an extra 3500 girls have taken up the game. There are now almost 28,000 registered female rugby players in New Zealand, which equates to a 14.5 per cent rise on last year.

What is highly significant is that the growth was across all age groups, but particularly in the junior ranks. The number of girl Small Blacks – aged five to 12 – grew 15 per cent compared to the overall growth in Small Blacks numbers of 2.6 per cent.

So what has caused this dramatic increase in female numbers playing our national game?

It is a combination of key factors.

Increased resourcing at all levels of the game from New Zealand Rugby has helped, with innovative formats of the game such as Rippa Rugby and the new Quick Rip format for intermediate and secondary girls giving non-contact entry points to the game.

The excellent team at Bay of Plenty Rugby are leading the way among New Zealand provincial unions in promoting the game among all female age groups.

The success of the Black Ferns and Black Ferns Sevens has also played a major role in inspiring the next generation of young women to consider rugby as a fun and healthy option.

It seems the mainstream rugby audience are also on board.

The Black Ferns test against the Wallaroos from Eden Park scored a massive TV audience of 526,000.

The Farrah Palmer Cup match between the Bay of Plenty Volcanix and Taranaki was shown live on SKY TV. Driven by the best caller in the country, Scotty Stevenson, with expert comments from Black Fern Sarah Goss, it was a great spectacle to behold.

The Volcanix crushed Taranaki 73-0 to make it a rare hat trick of wins for Bay of Plenty over Taranaki this season, after the Steamers won 30-10 in the Mitre 10 Cup and the national champion under-19s thrashed Taranaki 94-0.

But the Steamers are in disarray after losing five games on the bounce.

The lack of discipline in a record 54-21 defeat to Waikato, followed by the inept defeat to an average Manawatu side on Thursday is a major concern. They conceded too many penalties and have seemingly lost the art of catching the ball in contact.

The Steamers badly miss veteran first-five Mike Delany, out for the remainder of the season, but need to beat Otago, Southland and Northland in their last three games or they can kiss goodbye to a spot in the Championship playoffs.