Sarah Hunter believes England are on the cusp of becoming trailblazers in European women’s rugby both on and off the pitch.
The Red Roses have enjoyed remarkable success in 2019, winning the Women's Six Nations Grand Slam before triumphing over France twice in as many weeks, claiming their first win on French soil since 2012 in the first of their autumn internationals.
Their success comes as no surprise to many, with England having won 15 of the 24 Six Nations tournaments held since 1996, but for Hunter, it is the growth they are spearheading off the pitch that really makes the Red Roses stand out.
England recorded their fourth win in a row against Les Bleues in front of 9,699 fans at Sandy Park last weekend and according to the back-rower, those attendance figures will soon be giving the famously well-supported French women's team a run for their money.
“France may have been the leaders in getting support for the women’s game once upon a time but we’re certainly catching up,” said the England captain.
“We all knew it was going to be difficult when we saw the autumn fixtures and that we had a double-header against the French.
“France has always been a difficult place for us to go, having not won there since 2012 before two weeks ago and they always take us to sold-out grounds where there will be a hostile atmosphere.
“But people are really coming out to support us too now, even at away games and on Saturday at Sandy Park, we could really feel the fans behind us.
🌹 The final #RedRoses match of 2️⃣0️⃣1️⃣ 9️⃣
— England Rugby (@EnglandRugby) November 21, 2019
🙌 5️⃣ 0️⃣ caps for @NHunt09
👏 1️⃣1️⃣9️⃣ caps for skipper @sarah_hunter8
🎆 England looking to make it 3️⃣ from 3️⃣ in the #QuilterInternationals pic.twitter.com/YMUt9nN6cJ
“The atmosphere was incredible when we played there in the Six Nations and it was no different this time. Everywhere we go now, we’re selling out stadiums or nearing full capacity and for us, that’s amazing.
“When I got my first cap 12 years ago, we played at Old Albanian Rugby Club in front of just a couple of hundred people. It’s a great club, but not where you’d host an international game these days.
“Now we’re playing in front of tens of thousands of people in the likes of Exeter, Doncaster and Bedford where we face Italy this weekend. The shift has been huge, and I think we really are on the crest of a wave.”
The future is looking bright on all fronts for England rugby, but Hunter knows there is still plenty of work to be done if they want to retain their Women's Six Nations title in 2020.
They may have won 16 home internationals in a row, but that record is only just intact, the Red Roses needing a last-minute try from Lydia Thompson to defeat France 17-15 last weekend and the 34-year-old insists an improved performance is needed against Italy - who finished second in the Women's Six Nations earlier this year - in Bedford on Saturday.
Your #RedRoses squad to take on Italy this Saturday 🌹
— England Rugby (@EnglandRugby) November 21, 2019
📍 Goldington Road, Bedford
⏰ K.O: 15:00 GMT
🎫 Get your tickets ➡️ https://t.co/D2swursHGl
Preview 👉 https://t.co/rwEQkY8qS2#ENGvITA #SendHerVictorious #QuilterInternationals @O2sports @Quilter_Rugby pic.twitter.com/IAwI1acOWS
“Building on our winning momentum is so important if we want to register success next year, both on and off the pitch,” she added.
“Our two results against France will not feel as good as they do right now if we don’t back them up with a win against Italy on Saturday.
“The progress they’ve made over the past few years has been quite incredible.
“We know we have to improve on our weak areas if we want to finish our autumn series on a high ahead of next year’s Six Nations.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article