England star Hannah Botterman has set herself the goal of establishing herself as the world’s best loosehead prop by the end of the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup.
Botterman starred in the UK opening Friday, hosting the US 69-7 in Sunderland. It was the beginning of a campaign where Redborough headed into competition as an overwhelming favorite to win the entire tournament.
Botterman won the second of England’s 11 attempts and was pleased with the team’s efforts, but also has her own personal goals. “I worked really hard to get into a decent shape throughout the offseason. I don’t want to be shy about the fact that I want to be the best loosehead prop in the world. I want to solidify this tournament.
She joked.
The UK was facing a full US team with Hope Rogers, widely regarded as one of the best loosehead props in the world. “Obviously, Hope is a really good player. She plays really well during the week of Prem Week. But honestly, I don’t want it to be asked (if Botterman is the best prop in the world).
“I think I’m within the scope of the conversation, but now I just want to keep pushing and improve. Everyone can improve anywhere, but for a long time, my scrumming hasn’t been the best. I’ve really worked on it.
“Assisted wisely, I’m happy. I think I can get a little stronger and put a little more weight on my defense. I feel physically in a really good place.
“I put myself in a physical place where I can deal with myself, and it’s just whether I can produce what I want to produce. The desire has always been there, but I feel I can do a little more now.
“But in the end I want to do everything I can to the team. If it works well in that, if your Ellie Kirdunne is doing well, if your Sadia Caveya, your Meg Jones, everyone plays, we put ourselves in a really good place. It was class.”
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Botterman also paid tribute to the work scrum coach Nathan Katt did at camp.
“Catty was great. He brought us a wealth of experience. He really works well with the complexity of Front Lau and what we want to do. He’s a huge thing for us and it’s beneficial for us to see the area specifically.”
Overall, Botterman was pleased with England’s opening round performance and was pleased to play in front of a record crowd in Sunderland.
“We are really fortunate to be in the position we are. We see all the people who came before us and really worked to put us in this position, and we can obviously benefit from now, but if it’s not for them, we’re not here.