“I won’t play the World Cup.”
They were the first words Piper Duck heard after a shoulder injury in a crash in March.
It was a long exhausting road for Wallaros backlowers to reach global exhibits, suffering a series of crushed injuries over two years.
Duck, who went down while playing for NSW Waratus in the Women’s Super Rugby Semi-Finals earlier this year, thought her World Cup dream was over. A few weeks after getting injured in her left shoulder in the preseason and letting her go for this year’s opening game, she hit another big hit, but this time she completely torested AC on her right shoulder.
It was a 24-year-old hammer blow that had already fought back in 2023 with a leg injury. This meant that despite being nominated as the leader of the side by then-coach Jay Tregoning, she had no chance to captain her side. She then missed the Wallaron Tour and WXV2 Tournament in Ireland and Wales at the end of 2024 with an ankle surgery.
In 2025, she had received a cortisone injection on each shoulder.
But after such a long and intense battle, Duck didn’t call it a simple stop. Instead, after consulting with the surgeon and team doctor, she decided to undergo surgery now, miss the World Cup or to rehabilitate vigorously for several months, and ultimately promote her selection during the final Test match on the side in July.
“One of my first conversations with the doctors is that you don’t play the World Cup. That was one of my first conversations,” Duck said ahead of the tournament kickoff. “It was very shattered back then, but I spoke to a few people and got some other opinions before looking at the surgeon.
“I was already conservative and had made the decision in two days to be at the gym two days later. I didn’t know what I was doing, but I was there because there was a really tight timeline to come back.
“It was ground so basically, I was three months after the post-dislocation to make the World Cup and thankfully it worked.”
Given the tight timeline, Duck decided to pull Wallaron’s jersey at the final World Cup audition, pushing himself to the limits. Twelve weeks later, she was lined up in Australia for a team facing Samoa. He then featured Wallaros’ benches with New Zealand and Wales, and played in a side farewell clash in Sydney.
Given her long list of injuries, the backrower was almost covered in head to toe with strap tape, and the joints were protected with AC pads on both shoulders as she took her onto the field. And she knew that, of course, there was a mental aspect of recovery she had to overcome, for athletes, especially when she returned from her injuries.
“I actually spoke to a sports psychologist through that,” Duck said. “I knew my mental block was carrying because that was how I injured myself.
“To be honest, until you started training properly (did you have confidence in your shoulders), these first contacts, first hits (it was difficult).
“I would lie if I told you I wasn’t thinking about anything, but was it even worse than my shoulder?
“I know it sounds crazy, but is it like you got it after going outside for such a long time?
“But we have seen that we encountered the biggest people on the field in training, and we have made sure that we are working on the biggest people on our team.
“Thankfully, it all worked, but it was very difficult. It was really difficult at first.”
Of the five fixtures, including the four Wallaroos tests, Duck was not certain to travel to the UK. In particular, all 32 square kilometres members are given together news of their choice.
“I was honestly ec,” Duck said when asked about her choice. “I think I actually screamed verbally when I found out I was going to the World Cup.
“The injury and everything I went through was one of those surreal moments. It’s absolutely incredible to have the opportunity to participate in my second World Cup itself. After being injured over the past two and a half years, it feels quite special.
“When I go on my rugby journey, I don’t remember the particular things I actually notice. I remember the last World Cup. There are really special moments, but I don’t actually remember the phone call from my last World Cup.
Duck is currently preparing to play in the Wallaros opening test against Samoa. There is a prediction that Australia’s World Cup will rely on the quarterfinals by winning a massive opening before challenging America in the second pool match and making sure they reach the knockout stage with a victory against their PAC4 rivals.