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Youngest Maher sister on her 'incredible' sibling and why Wallaroos match was 'stressful'
By Lucy Lomax
This Rugby World Cup has shown fandom, friendship and family bonds in spades. And no different has been the Maher family in the stands showing support for their daughter and sister, Ilona.
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Rugby’s most-followed player has been showing why she’s such an asset for the game both on the pitch and off it, ranking as one of the top performers after securing three turnovers in the Eagles draw with Australia in last weekend’s thriller in York.
The youngest of the Maher siblings, Adrianna, expressed her emotions at watching such a high stakes topsy turvy match with her sister on the pitch.
“(It was) incredibly stressful. I’m used to sevens matches, so 14 minutes of, you know, anxiety and it being 80 minutes was something different. Something special. (It’s) all to play for in the next game now.”
The USA will play Samoa in their final pool match this weekend whereas the Wallaroos take on England needing one point to secure the second quarter-final spot for pool A. With Maher knowing the Eagles will need to secure a bonus point win and overturn the positive points difference the Wallaroos currently have on them.
“They have to go all in. I, at the moment, don’t know the math or the point differential, but I’m excited to see it and I think the girls just played such a great match and it was tough, but I’m so proud of Ilona and the entire team.”
The world of professional rugby has been showcased to Ilona’s millions of followers from her sevens days on the circuit and attendance at two Olympic Games to the 15s world where she came across to the UK to play for Bristol Bears at the start of the year to hone her craft.
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The 29-year-old has brought new audiences to the game whilst spreading body positive messages, and expectedly her younger sibling is extremely proud.
“I don’t even know, proud can’t even describe it. It’s so much more than that. When she first started, the stadiums we’d go to were so empty, or empty is a bad word, but, you know, they weren’t full, less than half even.
“Just seeing the interest in people and the young girls, and to know my sister had an impact on that? That’s just incredible. It really is.”
You can watch Ilona this weekend as the USA Eagles play Samoa on Saturday 6th September with a quarter-final spot on the line.
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