Saracens and England captain Marlie Packer has paid tribute to the trailblazers of women’s rugby on SuperPWR Weekend.
With all four Allianz Premiership Women’s Rugby matches set to be broadcast live across TNT Sports, Discovery+, BBC iPlayer, and YouTube, the 34-year-old was keen to recognise how far the sport has come.
This comes in the season that Saracens Women are celebrating 35 years since nine players recognised a need for a women’s rugby club in North London.
Now the most successful PWR outfit in the competition with three league titles, Saracens are credited with the development of numerous internationals and a host of Rugby World Cup winners and Packer is hopeful of emulating the sport’s trailblazers.
The full list of results from this season
She said: “I just think from where we were 35 years ago with Amanda Bennett, Liza Burgess, Emma Mitchell and that calibre of players that formed Saracens, some of those names that have played internationally, coached for a long time.
“Liza Burgess, I remember her coaching me at Bristol back when I was a young whippersnapper first playing in the league, to where the league has gone now, I think is so impressive.
“Those lovely ladies are the pioneers of our game and for me to play my small part in growing the game and inspiring future boys and girls, even older people, to take part in.
“It is something I find very special, and I want to give back and be able to do.”
One way to celebrate a landmark season could well be with silverware.
After playing 10 games, Packer and her teammates find themselves second in the league table, nine points adrift of reigning champions Gloucester-Hartpury with a game in hand.
Sarries’ only loss of the season to date has come at the hand of the West Country club, with Alex Austerberry’s team having been ruthless throughout the start of this season.
Having been dumped out of the PWR play-offs a season ago at the semi-final stage, and not making the showpiece finale for the first time, it has been clear that the team from StoneX Stadium have been making up for that disappointment.
“Coming off the back of last season, being knocked out in the semis, not reaching that final that we have previously been in every PWR season was massively disappointing for us,” Packer explained.
“We know this season we have got to get back on the horse and get back to the way we like to play. We have had a lot of changes in player personnel and new coaches coming in, we have been in a really positive place.
“We haven’t really clicked yet. I don’t think. But that doesn’t matter right now, because we have only just entered the second half of the season.
“We need to make sure that everything has clicked and we are firing on all cylinders when we get to the business end of the season, and that comes around at semi-finals, finals time.”
Next up on their crusade to be crowned English champions for the fourth time are Leicester Tigers.
Set to be broadcast live on PWR’s YouTube channel on Sunday lunchtime, Saracens are coming up against a team that has increased in confidence since they met at Mattioli Woods Welford Road in December.
“With the likes of Meg Jones and the rest of the squad,” Packer said, “they have got a real belief thing going on at the moment and you can really see that in the results and the tries they are getting, because they are trusting in what they are saying and doing.”
With thanks to the PWR
