England legend Maggie Alphonsi urges Red Roses to deliver at Women’s World Cup by inspiring the next generation of girls

Maggie Alphonsi is urging the Red Roses to embrace the spotlight at the Women’s Rugby World Cup and deliver by inspiring the next generation of girls to follow in their footsteps.

The 44-year-old former international was part of the England side that clinched the World Cup nine years ago and will be pitch side as John Mitchell’s squad look to replicate that success this summer.

Over the last 30 years, by investing over £6 billion into grassroots clubs and organisations, The National Lottery has been game-changing for women and girls’ sport – playing a significant role in England’s recent successes on and off the field.

The investment is vital for the women and girls’ game, as without a thriving amateur scene, success internationally is not achievable for Mitchell’s side.

It’s a pathway that has led to four consecutive Guinness Women’s Six Nations Grand Slams and a world No.1 ranking for the Red Roses in just the past couple of years.

And ahead of their opening game against the USA at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland, Alphonsi is urging the side to not get lost in the excitement, to shrug off their ‘runners-up’ title from the past two World Cups and back themselves to deliver at the final hurdle.

Staying Focused

“The world’s eyes will be on this first game,” said Alphonsi, who was at Houghton RFC, which is just down the road from where the Red Roses face USA in the first match of the tournament.

“There’s going to be a lot of social media attention on it and media coverage and it’s easy to get lost and overwhelmed by it all, especially for England as host nation.

“Add that to the fact that many of them experienced the big loss in the last World Cup in 2022, it’s been a long journey.

“It’s been three years of having to grin and bear it until they get the opportunity to go again.

“So, I would be saying to them, you’ve done all the hard work, you’ve done the graft, so now it’s just about execution and backing yourself.”

Ambassadors

And Alphonsi is convinced the current crop of England players are the perfect ambassadors to help grow the game and increase interest in the sport, leaning into social media and content creation to do it.

“I think what’s been really interesting about watching how women’s rugby is developed is how people have really embraced social media,” she said.

“Across the board, from all the teams, every individual is showing their personality and controlling their narrative, which I think is incredibly important.

“It’s about striking that balance, which I think a lot of the women rugby plays have definitely got.”

Ahead of the opening game between hosts England and the USA, Alphonsi was joined by former England international Ugo Monye at Houghton RFC – an event organised and hosted by The National Lottery.

The National Lottery has invested nearly £50 million in women’s and girls’ rugby in England since 2009, when Alphonsi was gracing the pitch herself, with £11.8 million committed to women’s and girls’ rugby in a five-year period to 2027 by Sport England.

National Lottery

The funding is supporting increased participation, non-contact rugby for 14–18-year-olds, schools‘ programmes, female coach recruitment, and dedicated resources for the women’s game, and the former England star noted how special it was to witness firsthand the impact that it is having ahead of what’s set to be a World Cup to remember.

“All they want to do is tackle me, and I’m like, ‘No guys, I’ve got dodgy knees’,” she said.

“It’s great to see that enthusiasm and hunger because when I was starting, if you said to any of the girls in my school if they fancied playing rugby they would say ‘absolutely not’ but there are 120 girls in this club now, which is one third of their members.

“I’m just pleased to see how far it has come and that really does motivate me.

“It’s all from that investment that the National Lottery put into grassroots sports. There has been six billion pounds invested over 30 years, and a vital 170 million of that into rugby and women’s and girls’ rugby too.

“So, I guess what I love about coming to your grassroots clubs like this is that you get to see it in action.”

Thanks to National Lottery players, over £6 billion of National Lottery funding has been invested into grassroots sport. More than £170 million of National Lottery funding has transformed grassroots rugby across the UK, including vital investment into the women and girls’ game and creating the infrastructure that’s now producing world-class female players. 

By Megan Armitage

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