Journey is just beginning, says Zackary
By Lucy Lomax
12/3/21
Of all the clubs in the Premier 15s competition, Exeter Chiefs Women have been the indisputable surprise of the season, retelling a well-rehearsed story line, in a league in need of a shakeup.
The newly-formed Chiefs side played their first-ever match in the competition in October and have since risen to fifth in the table, currently riding a high of seven wins on the bounce, which included the scalps of three of the league’s most dominant sides; Saracens Harlequins and, most recently, Wasps..
The victories meant the Devon side ended Saracens’ 33-match unbeaten run in the league, producing perhaps the biggest upset in Premier 15s history, whilst backing it up a week later by denying a Harlequins side packed with internationals from scoring a single try- practically unheard of.
The recent results are less of a surprise to current USA Eagles captain and Exeter flanker Kate Zackary, who suggests the way the team culture and cohesiveness was handled from the start, plus the club making good on their promise of investment, has meant results were always likely to shift in their favour.
“The first few months everyone was relocating or changing lifestyles, which I think was an immediate uniting factor for the team,” says Zackary. “There wasn’t much culture chat in those first few months, we just let the environment develop organically. Everyone had been new at one point in those first few weeks, and everyone knew we were all going through the same thing. With a new club you don’t know what it’s going to be like until you get there.”
But for Zackary it was a risk worth taking. Brought up in the Mid-West of America, the former soccer scholar turned sevens player rose up the national ladder fast. After experiencing heart break in the 2017 World Cup semi-finals, losing to New Zealand, the 31-year-old believes featuring in the English domestic league is the best preparation if her and her teammates are to go one step further in the tournament this September.
“Back with the USA set up we’ve watched a lot of English domestic rugby, it’s a great way to do homework on English players. I personally was interested to see how our domestic competition (Women’s Premier League) matched up with the Premier 15s over here and how I matched up individually to players across the globe.”
The former San Diego Surfer back-row recalls how her own recruitment happened after being put in touch with the club via previous Saracens Head Coach Rob Cain, now in charge of the USA national women’s team.
“Rob saw an opportunity for a few Americans to play full time in the season leading up to the World Cup and with the long-term effect of Covid becoming obvious, he used his connections and put us in touch with the coaches. It’s also known within the women’s game that you’re probably going to have to uproot if you want to pursue your dreams of becoming a better player, so I took the opportunity.”
Praise for the recent wins has rightly landed in the laps of Head Coach and Assistant Coach, Susie Appleby and Amy Garnett who were in charge of the recruitment process. The two former England players had the extraordinary job of pulling together a 40-player elite team on Zoom, at a time during the height of the pandemic when face to face meetings were out of the question.
The pair did a grand job in terms of their recruitment efforts, acquiring untapped talent native to Devon and Cornwall whilst also searching further afield to entice international players from across the world. Not only was Zackary joined by four other USA internationals in signing a contract but also by stand out players from Canada, Spain, Holland, England and Wales.
The first few results of the season were disappointing for Exeter but by December they’d picked up wins over Worcester Warriors and DMP Durham Sharks, however, it wasn’t until a 38-0 thumping of Sale Sharks just before the Christmas break, which Zackary recalls as a turning point for the team.
“We got that win over Sale which I think was the momentum we needed. That win really sealed the deal, then we went into a two-week break over the New Year and we knew then that we were here to play.
“We saw our structure really come to fruition and started seeing people playing naturally off each other and finally not being so rigid. We were a bunch of people who had never played together before, coming from all different sorts of training styles and backgrounds from lower level to national team level and having to meet in the middle. Susie and Amy did a good job of installing some basics and then further into the season things became a bit more player led.
“As our culture developed, so did our defence. Defence is a system built on trust, you can have great tacklers, but you’ve got to trust your inside to make their tackles. You could see that in the number of double shots we put in against Saracens and Quins. Those dominant tackles are about trusting that someone is going to go low so you can go high, it’s one of those things that has come with time.
“It’s definitely been an environment with growing pains at times, but now we have beaten some of the best teams in the league, we’ve got fantastic players and coaches, great support staff and a unique opportunity to break into the top four.”
It shows, yet again in women’s sport, that investment pays off. Despite huge losses due to Covid-19, Exeter’s chairman, Tony Rowe OBE, has invested over £250,000 on the new women’s squad this season - more than any other Premier 15s club – money which has gone to paying players a £100 match fee and allowing at least 20 players to be contracted full-time and as results are demonstrating so far, this is money well spent.
It’s an exciting time for this bunch of players - all but strangers a year ago - and the journey is just beginning. But despite the excitement and adrenaline of the past few weeks, Zackary admits there’s a bigger goal on the horizon.
“The last four weeks have been a rollercoaster mentally and physically. It’s been emotionally draining because there’s so much excitement and hard work that’s been happening.
“Playing in this league is huge for our development. I originally came over with emerging winger Jennine Duncan and centre Gabby Cantorna and now we've got Joanna Kitlinski and Rachel Johnson here as well, so we are starting our own little gaggle of Americans!
"I remember our very first day arriving a month and a half after pre-season had started, wearing non-Exeter kit and standing like lost puppies in the corner of the gym. However, I knew this was a great opportunity to get to know Gabby and Jennine, two really key players for the future of the programme.”
Zackary admits the game is growing across the States despite USA Rugby declaring bankruptcy early last year as coronavirus took its toll on the game.
“It’s clear looking ahead that USA Rugby sees we are a competitive group, and they want to invest ahead of the World Cup, last year it was a lot more player funded. When Rob (Cain) took over in 2018, he had a big plan for the women’s 15s programme and how we were going to hit the ground running for the 2021 World Cup and we all really want to reach our potential.”
To uproot and move across the Atlantic in the midst of a pandemic to a team not even in existence a year ago, the American contingent at the club have shown huge drive and commitment to become better players. It makes you ponder, the Premier 15s might not be the only competition they shake up this year, but potentially the World Cup too.