SARAH HUNTER was 16 before she discovered that England had a women’s Test rugby team.
Some 21 years later, the team’s captain will bring down the curtain on a record-breaking career that has blazed a trail for the women’s game.
The 37-year-old will win a Red Roses all-time record 141st cap in tomorrow’s Six Nations opener against Scotland in her home town of Newcastle, before retiring on the spot.
It is fitting that Hunter’s first and last steps in rugby union will be taken in the north-east. When she started out at the Novocastrians club, she could not put a finger on any female rugby role models. As she closes out her career at Kingston Park, Hunter is the one the youngsters idolise.
Talk about transformative for representation. What the teenage Hunter could not see, now anyone can be.
This story is from the March 24, 2023 edition of Evening Standard.
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This story is from the March 24, 2023 edition of Evening Standard.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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