Asia Hogan-Rochester: 'I do want to challenge myself in ways I’ve never experienced before'

Asia Hogan-Rochester’s Sale Sharks debut was not quite the fairytale 26-year-old or their club new head coach, Tom Hudson, wanted.

Having arrived in England’s North West in early January for their first taste of Premiership Women’s Rugby action, the Canada international got just a handful of minutes on the pitch as Bristol Bears won the contest with Keira Bevan’s last-gasp penalty kick.

“With Asia’s first act with us, I wanted it to be a positive one,” Hudson said. “I wanted it to have impact to it. If it was 15 minutes to go and we needed a try or two, there’s no better person on the planet that can get you a try. I didn’t feel we needed that.

“Hopefully she’s forgiven me now. We had an honest conversation. I’m really looking forward to another week of training and a lot more involvement this week.”

Even in defeat the Sharks boss could see the positives in his team’s performance. Yes, the 31-year-old still described himself as “very sad” about the manner of his team’s loss but noted how his team had 67 per cent gainline success in the West Country. Closer to his 70 per cent target.

Things do not get any easier. This weekend Hudson’s team welcome Gloucester Hartpury to Cheshire on Saturday afternoon. The three-time champions are unbeaten so far this season and have picked up every point on offer to them over eight games.

Ahead of the Circus pitching up in the North West, Hogan-Rochester has been named among the replacements. Fellow winter arrival Brittany Hogan will again lend her support from the bench.

Now just over a month into her time with Sale, Hogan-Rochester is relishing the opportunity to play regular 15-a-side rugby. A scorer of five tries at last year’s Women’s Rugby World Cup, including two in Canada’s loss to England in the final, it is the first time the wing has played domestic 15-a-side rugby.

A regular feature in the Canada Women’s Sevens squad since she was 19, the opportunity to carry on her development in PWR was too good to refuse.

“I think for me right now there’s an opportunity to go and play sevens, but I have done that for most of my career at this point and I love those girls, but I do want to challenge myself in ways I’ve never experienced before,” Hogan-Rochester said.

“Over here in England it is the perfect balance of maybe wanting to give that offload, but maybe also still wanting to think a couple of phases ahead. That’s a big part of my game that I really want to grow – being able to be a threat without the ball in my hands.

“I feel like the Prem is the perfect place to put all of those things into play.”

Between the Women’s Rugby World Cup final and her arrival at Sharks, Hogan-Rochester enjoyed another two outings with Canada on the HSBC SVNS Series in Dubai and Cape Town.

While it was a fortnight did not yield any podium finishes for her side, it was the perfect point to pause involvement with the sevens setup before pursuing a new challenge.

The 26-year-old is not the sole sevens regular to now call PWR home, with Pamphinette Buisa and Chloe Daniels both having joined Bristol Bears for the remainder of this season.

 

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“It has been a lot of fun and, honestly, really challenging,” Hogan-Rochester said of their time with Sale so far. “The game of 15s, to me, I have played it at the highest levels but for any rugby player there’s so much to learn.

“Even with that being said, I had only really dipped my foot in the pond when I was at the World Cup. It’s been a challenge but exactly what I need at this point in my rugby career.”

Ahead of their debut, Hogan-Rochester’s teammates paid tribute to the North American’s signature look.

Over the course of the Women’s Rugby World Cup, people began to emulate the 26-year-old’s glittered face. It was even the cornerstone of Sale’s announcement that the wing had signed for the PWR side.

Georgie Perris-Redding, Erica Jarrell-Searcy and Sharifa Kasolo all dipped into their new teammates bag to try out a new look. Not only an opportunity to try out something new, it was also a display of affection for one of their newest teammates.

“It also goes into the moments before putting on the glitter,” Hogan-Rochester smiled. “For it’s doing my hair, doing my game day braids. Just getting together in a changing room going through all the glitter – because I have brought about 500 different types – and just figuring out which person liked what and seeing how everyone smiled and embraced it.

“There are people that said, ‘not today, not for me’, and that’s totally okay. Maybe the next game they will. Maybe they won’t. Allowing everybody to be themselves is the biggest thing for me and it means a lot to be embraced as a person. With the glitter as well, that’s an added bonus.”