Red Roses: Marlie Packer
CORK, IRELAND: APRIL 22: Ellie Kildunne #15 of England is congratulated by Marlie Packer #7 of England after scoring a try during the Ireland V England, Women's Six Nations Rugby match at Musgrave Park on April 22nd, 2023, in Cork, Ireland. (Photo by Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images)
Birthplace: Yeovil
DOB: 02/10/1989
Community Club:
Ivel Barbarians, now known as Yeovil RFC
Club: Saracens
Red Roses Debut: May 2008 v Sweden
Caps: 99
Why I play rugby: It’s a sport that allows me to express myself and has given me so many incredible opportunities
Following in the footsteps of England’s all-time appearance holder can be as daunting as it gets for a national team’s captain but Marlie Packer appears to be thriving.
Saracens No.8 Packer took over from Sarah Hunter – who is now a Red Roses coach – after the former Loughborough Lightning back row hung up her boots after her 141st cap back in March.
A confident, hard hitting and abrasive player, Packer fits the mould of a natural captain and has been in fine form since taking over the armband.
Packer, who scored a world leading 11 international tries, finished an incredible 2023 international season by winning the World Rugby Player of the Year award after yesterday’s victory that saw the Red Roses lift the inaugural WXV title in New Zealand.
She said: “Winning my 99th cap, winning the WXV and winning World Player of the Year-I don’t think tonight can be topped off any time soon.”
Packer also guided England to the Six Nations Grand Slam title at Twickenham back in March as her side went through 2023 unbeaten. She said: “I’ve absolutely loved being captain. I am super privileged to have been asked to do it. I take my hat off to Sarah Hunter, I never knew how hard the job was and how much work she did until I took on the role.
“It’s great for me that she’s in and around camp, so I can check in with her and I’ve got a good leadership group that I can go to and help share the load. They do that very well which makes my job a lot easier. It’s all about putting the team first and making sure that the team are in the best place whether that’s in a gym session or on the pitch in a Test match.”
England have been joined mid-tournament by their new head coach John Mitchell and Packer says the inquisitive former All Blacks boss is already making his mark on the team, despite not leading the side fully for a Test just yet, with interim head coach Louis Deacon currently in charge.
Packer said: “He’s come in and asked us loads of questions as players, he caught me at a training session today and asked me why are we doing the scenario we were doing. By asking questions it opens up your own thought process of why you’re doing stuff and he sees the game differently which has been really enjoyable. Off the pitch, he’s merged in with the group really well, one of his first bus journeys he shared a playlist with us all and brought his own speaker. So, he’s definitely one of us and part of the team.”
Across the sport, there’s been a rapid increase in cards given out by referees. England suffered a red card to Lydia Thompson in their World Cup final loss to New Zealand last year, and with Sam Cane dismissed during the All Blacks’ loss to the Springboks in last weekend’s men’s final, Packer says it’s all about preparing in training for ‘nightmare’ scenarios.
She said: “You need to make up scenarios in training. Picking up cards can be damaging so you need to make sure that if it does occur the team buy into whatever instructions are given and play what’s in front of them.”
