Maggie Alphonsi

England rugby legend, Maggie Alphonsi, talks to SportsNation’s Tom Walker about the current state of her sport – and why visible role models are key to increasing participation

Maggie Alphonsi made her England debut in 2003 at the age of 19. Throughout her rugby career – which has continued in a number of roles after she hung up her boots as a player in 2014 – she has been a pioneer both on and off the pitch. During her 11-year international career, Alphonsi played for England a total of 74 times, scoring 140 points. She won a World Cup and helped England win a record-breaking seven consecutive Six Nations crowns. During her career, she became – for many – the face of international women’s rugby and also one of the most well- known names in women’s team sports. She was named Sunday Times Sportswoman of the Year in 2010 and received her MBE in 2012.

The trailblazing has continued after she retired. She has become a consummate media professional and regularly commentates on live rugby matches for SKY Sports and the BBC. In 2015 she became the first ever former female player to commentate on men’s international rugby when she was signed up by ITV for the Rugby World Cup.

Yet, born with a club foot and hailing from a single-parent family living on a council estate in Lewisham, southeast London, she might have not been everyone’s first pick to go on to represent her country in a sport dominated by players educated in private schools. Alphonsi herself, however, attributes her success to exactly that – her upbringing in challenging conditions.

“Opportunities were low,” she says. “My mum was a single parent and an amazing woman, she had two jobs so I could have a life. In the environment I grew up in, we all had this same attitude - if you want to be successful you have to work really, really hard, go above and beyond.”

SportsNation asked Alphonsi for her views on the state of rugby on a wide range of topics – from making the sport more inclusive to the importance of role models in inspiring the next generation of players.

How inclusive do you see rugby union as a sport at the moment? At the grassroots level on the pitch, I believe our game is inclusive and is continuing to grow. What makes our game unique is how open it is. At the elite level this is improving, but I believe more still needs to be done.

In terms of gender, rugby has become one of the fastest growing sports for women and that is reflected at the elite level. Where I would like to see greater progress is race/ethnicity. In the women’s game, at the elite end, I still feel there are some barriers to entry and this is also seen in leadership roles off the field.

If you were given a free hand to make rugby more inclusive, what things would you change and how would you change them? At the grassroots level. I would make rugby clubs the heart of the community. Not just make the club all about rugby, I would open it up so it can be used for other activities that people within the community will want to use and see the club as a place for them.

At the grassroots level, I would make rugby clubs the heart of the community

There are many clubs around the country where I have seen this work well and through opening their doors they have seen new people join the club from within the community who would have initially not seen rugby or the rugby club for them, but now they feel they belong to the club/sport.

I would also encourage more outreach work and go into the communities where rugby is not an option. I would conduct taster sessions and share the positive values of the sport.

At the elite level, I would continue to share the stories of those that have progressed to that level and tell their journey of how they did it, so others can learn and follow. I would also open up leadership roles so more people from different communities and backgrounds can apply for them.

If you did a SWOT test on rugby union across the entire sport, what would you consider as the sport’s:

Strengths

The main strength of our sport is that it’s seen as a game for all and it appeals to a wide variety of people of different shapes and sizes.

Weaknesses

To slightly contradict the point above, the sport still has its stereotypes and we need to do better at selling it and sharing those positive stories.

Opportunities

There are huge opportunities when it comes to continuing to grow the women’s game, similar to what we’ve seen with women’s football. The audience – attendances and viewing figures – are growing and the commercial opportunities are there.

Threats

Managing the well-being of our participants and making sure our sport continues to be safe and the players’ welfare is at the heart of everything we do.

One of your school teachers was Welsh rugby legend, Liza Burgess, who you’ve credited with helping you discover rugby. How can we help young people meet their “own Liza Burgesses” – and use sport for positive change in their lives? What Liza did for me is she saw my strengths and not my weaknesses. Easier said than done, but it’s important that leaders, teachers and deliverers see the potential in young people and what they can do, rather than what is wrong and what they can’t do. Liza never gave up on me, she saw past my troubles and directed me towards a sport that would play towards my strengths.

You have been involved with rugby at every level – as player, coach, administrator and broadcaster. How important is it for young people to have role models that “look and sound” like them? It is very important. Visible role models are key. To see yourself, in what you hope to be definitely makes you feel it’s possible. Growing up I looked up to Denis Lewis because she was a viable role model on the TV and I saw myself in her. I was inspired by her background and achievements and I wanted to be her, but in rugby union.

Growing up I looked up to Denis Lewis because she was a viable role model on the TV and I saw myself in her

Do you do any mentoring? I don’t do any mentoring in a formal capacity anymore, but I do provide advice and support to those individuals (mainly women) who are looking to follow a similar path to me in broadcasting. I help provide insight into the industry and how best to navigate it.

In 2015 you became the first ever former female player to commentate on men’s international rugby. Today, nearly a decade later, having female commentators working on men’s sport is considered standard across all sports – how proud are you to have been one of the pioneers? I am incredibly proud. What is pleasing is that I may have been the first pundit, but I am definitely not the last. There are so many women working as pundits/ commentators across various sports on the TV. Sadly, we still get a lot of negativity for working in men’s sports. Thankfully, it is not stopping us. If anything, it just galvanises us and makes us more driven. The aim is to inspire the next generation of women and girls out there to follow in our footsteps.

It’s a general election year. If the incoming government were to ask you to devise one policy which would make the biggest impact in getting more young people from all backgrounds to play sport, what would that be? I would increase time for physical activity in the school curriculum. I used to work for the Youth Sport Trust and our focus was all about the importance of physical activity in schools. I have always been incredibly passionate about making sure children are exposed to more sport and benefiting from the physical/mental attributes that come with it. Give children more options and variety to be active.