Latest news with #MillyMcEvoy
Yahoo
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Red Roses star Kabeya revelling in fun-fuelled mentality at World Cup
By Milly McEvoy England rugby star Sadia Kabeya is ready to have fun as the Red Roses seek global glory on home soil. The 23-year-old is set to embark on a second major tournament with England, having burst onto the scene in 2021. The undeniable best team in the world, England have external expectations to lift silverware this summer but Kabeya's aims are different from that. 'For me, it is hard because I have always played for the enjoyment, and I think it is natural in any professional sport for you to have ups and downs,' she explained, as part of a new LG OLED TV collaboration ahead of this summer. 'But I just want to be able to play with so much fun, and that is how I want people to see me on the pitch. 'I don't have to play rugby because I want to be fast, I want to hit somebody, I want to play rugby because Sadia has so much fun, and I want to have that much fun. 'I think in professional sport you lose that, and I want to gain that back and be that for someone watching, that would be amazing.' Kabeya was a new face to the England team in New Zealand three years ago, when the Red Roses were beaten by the hosts in the final. Since then, she has established herself as one of the most reliable members of the back row, but with that comes more pressure. She added: 'The first time for me was a whirlwind. I was fresh into the squad, and it was a huge experience for me. 'I think this time it means that bit more, being at home and being a bit more cemented in the squad. To be able to hopefully represent my country at home would mean a lot. 'Three years ago was a baptism by fire. We played in record crowds at the time, and to play in that at 19 years old, the biggest stage for rugby, it taught me to deal with those crowds and with those big pressure moments. 'In a team like England, you are used to winning, but when you go to a big tournament, everything is different, everyone is on their A game, so I think what I have taken from those times is how to deal with those big pressure situations.' The Red Roses and the Lionesses are both in action this summer and both will be on free-to-air TV, with LG helping the nation get closer to the action with LG OLED TVs. Life's Good for sport fans as LG's leading technology provides an unmatched immersive sporting atmosphere thanks to incredible OLED picture quality, Motion Pro technology for the smoothest action possible and unbelievable soundbar surround sound to bring the stadium feeling home. For Kabeya, it is an honour to share in a year like no other. 'I think it is amazing, we are in an era where women's sport is on the rise,' she said. 'No matter what you are doing, no matter what sport you are playing, you can always see progression. 'With the cricket and the football happening at the same time and in the same year, it is quite a pinch-me moment to be a part of it. I am really excited to get into and be a part of it.'
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Cold War bunker helping women's rugby on the road to parity with the men's game at Rugby World Cups
By Milly McEvoy, Sportsbeat A Cold War bunker in Oxfordshire is helping the Women's Rugby World Cup achieve parity with the men's game. While World Rugby have a target of achieving equality at men's and women's World Cups by 2033, the 2025 tournament in England will see the medical services match those at the men's editions. That includes investing in state-of-the-art equipment, with portable X-rays set to be used for the first time in the women's game in England, having first been brought in for the men's World Cup in France in 2023. The medical equipment is now making its way to the match venues and teams as they arrive in the country for the tournament. Previously, it was all stored at an 'eerie' airbase near Bicester. 'Until I turned up, I didn't know it was a Cold War bunker,' tournament medical director Dr Jo Larkin said. 'There is this place called Upper Heyford, it is a bit like a random purpose-built town, and it feels eerie or like you are in a movie. 'You drive through and you turn into a Cold War bunker, and there are loads of them. It is a great space, it is quite unique. 'That is where we have got all of our kit, and the kit has taken up over a third of space in there. It is a huge amount. 'We have got rows and rows of kit, and every kit goes on a roadshow around the country. We have got four kits moving around, but we've also agreed to provide the teams with their medical kit, their trauma kit. 'It has been a lot of packing, three and a bit days in total, with lots of audit checks. This will be going around the whole country.' Larkin is returning to women's rugby, having started her career working with the then-amateur Red Roses side. She moved into the men's game and has since worked in tennis and sailing, as well as practising clinically. Larkin added: 'It is all about prioritising player care and management. 'When I started off in the women's game, and was flicking between the men's and women's, I used to really struggle because this is a person, a human being. I don't care what their genetics are, they should get the same medical care. 'They finally are, which is amazing because when I first started off my journey, I would have a different experience from when I was working with the men's and the women's. 'I am proud to say we are prioritising player welfare, and we are prioritising both male and female players the same way.' The commitment to equal treatment for male and female players comes as World Rugby Chief Medical Officer Professor Éanna Falvey revealed that women in rugby are much more proactive in engaging with medical insight. The take-up for the new smart mouthguards with LED lights, which detect head impacts, is almost universal, with the only players at the Rugby World Cup not set to wear them having braces. Meanwhile, the take-up rate for male players wearing smart mouthguards is around 85 per cent. Falvey said: 'I have to take my hat off to the women's players. If men were as forethinking and as accepting of change and research as women, we would be a lot further along the road in the men's game as well. 'The women's game has been phenomenal in grabbing any information they can get, grabbing any opportunity they can get to advance their game, and it has been brilliant to work with the game as a whole. 'It sounds like a generalisation, but it is a fact that anybody who has been in the game has seen.'
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Gabby Sinclair encouraging others to speak up and seek out on women's health issues
By Milly McEvoy, Sportsbeat Gabby Sinclair knows what it is like not to be listened to when it comes to women's health issues, now she is speaking up so the cycle is not repeated for others. The Birmingham Panthers shooter experienced heavy periods as she was making her way in netball, but found her concerns were not always taken seriously. The Australian wants to use her platform as a Netball Super League player to encourage others to seek out and speak out. 'I'm interested in a lot of things to do with women's health,' she said. 'There are lots of different spaces. I do think there is a big gap in education for women and young girls surrounding a whole variety of women's health issues, whether that is the menstrual cycle, contraception, you can go on for ages. "Within sport, there is still a big gap in regards to how we should train around our menstrual cycle, supporting athletes who might experience severe pain during their period. 'I think that is a space that can be really developed and something potentially in sport or education in schools that I'd like to get into post-netball. 'There has been a shift now in women speaking up about their experiences, women actually being heard and listened to. 'Netball is getting there, but there is more that we can do. We've been offered webinars or information sessions around fertility or the menstrual cycle and things like that, but I think there is a gap that could be improved.' While Sinclair is coming at this from lived experience, it is also from learning too – the 31-year-old is a registered nurse and is studying for a master's in women's health. She is now planning for a post-netball role helping educate women and girls around various health topics. Sinclair added: "I have always had very heavy periods, and it is something that I thought was just normal, but as I got older I realised how it was actually affecting me. 'I then started to question it; 'I don't think this actually is normal.' I went to a few doctors who said it was just my period, or said go on the pill and it will decrease your bleeding, but it took me a while to actually be fully listened to and work out a plan. 'It has challenged me in games, I remember I was playing a grand final at age grade level, and I had my period and was bleeding very heavily and felt so exhausted. NSL Unwrapped: Lightning join Pulse at the summit 'Now looking back at that and the interventions that I have got in place now, I would like to see that for a lot of other young girls coming through and feeling like they know what is normal and what is abnormal and feeling confident in reaching out for help. 'This is something that needs to be spoken about too; it is important for young girls to see elite athletes who have it. 'I thought when I was going through it at 15, 'Do other elite athletes have their periods and go through what I am going through?' You can feel quite alone, so it is important that it is spoken about." A golden goal for a golden girl 🏅Cool, calm and collected was Gabby Sinclair to get the win in tonights game for @PanthersNball 😅 — Netball Super League (@NetballSL) May 4, 2025 Sinclair has returned for a second stint in the Super League, having previously featured for LexisNexis Cardiff Dragons in 2023. She then returned Down Under to play for new team Melbourne Mavericks in the Suncorp Super Netball. Despite an impressive season, Sinclair was not offered another contract in Australia but jumped at the chance to join Birmingham Panthers. After missing the early round of Panthers' inaugural season through injury, Sinclair has made an impact for the West Midlands team, particularly with the Soft & Gentle Super Shot. Panthers' Gabrielle Coffey proud to represent First Nations on NSL stage 'It is something that is quite natural from a very young age,' she said. 'I would shoot from anywhere, anywhere I got the ball in the circle, I would just turn and shoot. 'I feel like I have always been a bit more of a long-range shooter. 'I do practice a lot! But it is probably more of a natural ability for me that I have had from a very young age.'
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Women's Rugby World Cup already exceeding expectations says tournament director Massey
By Milly McEvoy, Sportsbeat The 2025 Women's Rugby World Cup is already exceeding expectations with 100 days to go until the tournament kicks off, says tournament director Sarah Massey. More than 300,000 tickets had already been sold before the latest round of ticket sales began on Wednesday morning. It means that the tournament has already sold more than double the total number of tickets bought for the previous edition in New Zealand three years ago. 'We are exceeding expectations across all of our objectives,' Massey said. 'So everything that we set out to do, the ambition that we had, we are exceeding that. 'With 100 days to go, there is still a lot of work to do. We are busy working with all our host locations, our stakeholders, with the RFU on our legacy programme, with UK Sport. 'There are a huge number of people involved in what we are trying to do and trying to achieve, but we are ahead of expectations and are really excited for what is going to happen in a few months.' The tournament begins on 22 August with hosts England taking on the USA at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland, one of two non-rugby stadiums to be used across the 2025 edition. The success of the tournament means that the opener is the only game remaining with tickets to watch England in the group stages of the tournament. The final on 27 September has also sold out of its allocation, meaning there is a potential to sell out the venue for a women's match for the first time ever. Massey added: 'Ticket sales have been amazing, the fact that we have sold this many tickets this far out from the event and have still got 100 days to go. 'Obviously, when we get to those knockout stages, we don't know which teams will be in those knockout stages, but when we do know where those teams fall, there will be lots more tickets being bought. 'We went on sale at 9am on Wednesday morning, and there were already thousands in the ticket queue before the platform opened. 'We know the momentum the ticket sales are gaining across our eight iconic host locations across the country, and those communities are getting involved and building excitement. It is going to be incredible.' Massey was speaking as the new Women's Rugby World Cup trophy was revealed at Battersea Power Station. The new and bigger trophy is another example of the greater investment and interest in women's rugby. She said: 'This tournament will be era-defining in terms of the profile it gets on the BBC, it will be era-defining in terms of the standard we have been able to provide for those players and teams once they get here. 'We have been raising standards, making sure that we can provide the platform that they can thrive and perform at their best. 'We have got 16 teams who are all busy preparing and putting in so much work to be at their best when they are here. 'And it is going to be era-defining in terms of the number of people we have now engaged in women's rugby. 'Whether this is as an official, as a coach, as a player, or just want to engage as a fan and engage with so many of our powerful personalities that we have.'
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
New Women's Rugby World Cup trophy unveiled for 2025 tournament on 100 days to go
By Milly McEvoy, Sportsbeat A new Women's Rugby World Cup trophy that symbolises growth and player power has been revealed with 100 days to go until the 2025 edition of the tournament. The new trophy was unveiled at Battersea Power Station by two former champions, Rachel Burford and Gill Burns. Both were part of a player consultation group around replacing the previous trophy which had been used between 1998 and 2022. 'It was a discussion after the World Cup in 2022 and we were just talking about the power and the influence and the growth of the women and girls' game,' Sally Horrox, director of women's rugby at World Rugby, said. 'And what we could do around this competition in 2025 to really celebrate that. This is a global celebration of rugby and the biggest global celebration of women's rugby ever so we were looking at different ways to mark this moment. 'One of which is having the final at Allianz Stadium, another is the record-breaking ticket sales, and this trophy is part of that. 'It is a symbolic moment that reflects that power, the growth and the momentum.' The trophy, which stands at 36cm and weighs 4.5kg, is made of sterling silver but, unlike the previous trophy, is gold-plated, linking it to the Webb Ellis Cup, the men's Rugby World Cup trophy. The decision to upgrade the piece of silverware, as well as its design, was made in consultation with the players and sees it keep the two handles, which were a defining feature of the previous cup. That trophy had come under critique for being small, however, Horrox insisted that was not behind the decision for a new design. She added: 'That wasn't the driving force behind the change because if you spoke to the players that did lift the trophy – and we did consult them – it had a hugely special place in their heart. 'It is a fair observation on the size, but when we spoke to players, it meant a great deal to them. 'But what they also recognised was that this moment now in 2025 is really a pivot point and a point at which we start to look forward to where the game will go, can go, should go. 'And they wanted to take the opportunity to mark the moment and do something that looked forward. 'It is more about looking forward to the size of the opportunity that looks ahead of us.' Former England players Burford and Burns were joined by New Zealand legends Fiao'o Fa'amausili and Farah Palmer as part of a nine-player consultation group. Burford was part of the most recent England team to lift the trophy in 2014 and was pleased to see elements of the old design kept in the new one. She said: 'We've had some really good player consultations with a number of former captains who have lifted the trophy. 'It is one of those things that, at the time and in the moment, that former trophy means so much to so many people. 'But it was really important that we kept parts of that trophy in this one. It is almost celebrating and remembering and honouring that history being built into this new era, this new bold, exciting, huge, new trophy. 'It shows the space for women's rugby. These are the moments that are really important to be celebrated.'
