“This World Cup has the potential to change women’s rugby for ever’

The big interview Zoe Aldcroft Red Roses captain on the chance to grow the sport in England this summer and how she has benefited from playing youth rugby against boys

- Donald McRae

I was playing for Scarborough against Whitby," says Zoe Aldcroft as the England women's rugby captain pauses before the start of the World Cup this week and describes one of her formative experiences in the game. "I must have been 12 at the time as I was the only girl playing rugby and we were up at Whitby. It was the coldest day ever and the wind was whipping. There was such a steep slope at Whitby Rugby Club and they had this massive guy playing for them. Whenever he broke the line they always used to shout 'Cannonball'."

Aldcroft, the inspirational 28-year-old leader and lock forward, lets slip a gap-toothed grin as she remembers the scene. "He'd broken the line and, as the full-back, I was the last one between him and the try line. I knew I had to stop him so I dropped my shoulder and just nailed him. I think it stunned a lot of people."

Did that crunching tackle mark a sea change in attitudes towards her as a girl playing boys' rugby?

"Definitely in respect of my teammates, which was something I really enjoyed," she says. "I could see they trusted me and knew I could be just as tough as them."

We soon move on to a far she fell into rugby after her brother Jonathan switched from football. "I was down there watching him on the sidelines with my parents and the coach was like: 'C'mon then. Get involved.' I thought 'Yes' and never looked back. The best thing is that, while I was the only girl that used to play there, Scarborough Rugby Club now have 50 girls playing under-13s, under-15s and a senior set-up for women's rugby. It's changed so much."