Sarah Rendell takes a weekly look at some important women players
THIS WEEK…
Laura Perrin started playing rugby as her brother Tom, who's two years older than her, was in the sport. She attended Sunday school but didn't want to miss out on the fun her brother was having and so tried it out at the age of five and hasn't looked back.
The 22-year-old played for Flyde, Vale of Loom, Liverpool St Helens and West Park St Helens.
She then turned to her first team in the Premier 15s in Firwood Waterloo. After the re-tendering process in 2020 they were removed from the top-flight along with Richmond. Exeter Chiefs and Sale Sharks entered the league and Perrin signed for Sale.
The centre says the move was ‘difficult' but Sale can have a positive impact on women's rugby in the north.
“I have a lot of loyalty to places I have played, I really enjoyed playing at Firwood Waterloo. There are so many people there who worked incredibly hard behind the scenes.
I was reluc tant to leave but at the same time I knew that for women's rugby to stay strong in t he north wes t, that having a club tied to Sale Sharks was probably the best move because it massively helps the exposure.
“People say ‘oh you play in the Premiership, who for?' And you say ‘Firwo od Waterloo' and they just say ‘okay'. Whereas now my parents will speak to people and say ‘Sale Sharks' and they say ‘oh wow' and they ask how I'm getting on.
“It was a strange one having to move over but in terms of my own personal development and, I think for the development of the sport in this region, it's probably the right thing. It was a very difficult move to make and when I moved I ensured the lasting relationships I built with people there stayed there. So I'm going to go down and watch them play.”
Perrin is passionate about getting more women and girls into the sport. Outside of rugby, she works as a rugby coach for Sharks Community Trust – the charitable arm of Sale Sharks – and is trying to further the sport in the north.
She added: “Part of the reason I started coaching was to see how much impact I could have on local women and girls getting into the s port. With a com pa ny like Sharks it 's fantastic ast he reach that we have is [huge ].
“It allows us tohave an im – pact on children that may not have the resources to learn orplay rugby. That's so importantto grow the game and I'm so passio na te about it.”
