You need to be comfortable with being physical. In a year I’ve broken both thumbs and both little fingers
I’ve watched rugby my whole life, but it never crossed my mind that I could get out there and play. For boys, it seems a given that, from the age of three, they’ll be tumbling around on the floor. Growing up with my sister, it wasn’t like that at all. We didn’t have the same opportunities to be boisterous. A year ago, a friend told me he’d started coaching a women’s rugby team. He convinced me to go along to a session and I absolutely loved it.
I play 15-a-side full-contact rugby union for Newbury RFC. Broadly speaking, there are two roles on the team. The forwards are the ones who crash the ball down the pitch; the backs tend to be quick and use their pace to score tries. I’m a scrum-half, so it’s my job to link the two, to communicate with everyone and control the game. You have to be quite bossy, which suits me perfectly. Every time a team-mate is tackled, the scrum-half is generally the one who picks up the ball and passes it out, so you can’t switch off for a moment. You’re also the first line of defence. I’m 5ft 2in and 50kg (7st 12lb), so when someone twice my size is running at me full pelt it can be intimidating. But then the adrenaline kicks in and I’ll tackle them. If I get knocked down, my team-mates are there straight away to help me back up.
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