Asia Hogan-Rochester: The late starter making up for lost time

At 26, Asia Hogan-Rochester has already made an impressive start to their international career, despite having only collected 10 international caps to date.

Their path to rugby came later than most. They only took up the sport at 17 after it was suggested as a way to channel their energy.

That suggestion marked the start of a rapid rise in the game which so far has yielded an Olympic silver medal and two tries in the Women’s Rugby World Cup final as the North Americans lost 33-13 to England’s Red Roses.

“I started playing when I was 17 which is a bit later than most,” Hogan-Rochester told RugbyPass. “I had one more year left of high school. It came about because throughout a lot of my schooling journey, I had found myself getting into trouble and now always having the creative outlets to express all the energy that I had, especially as someone with ADHD.

“I found it hard to focus and stay still. Rugby was always suggested to me but I didn’t take it up until my now teammate, Charity Williams came back from the Rio Olympics [in 2016]. She showed everybody her bronze medal that she won with Canada.

“It turns out she went to my high school and described a lot of the things I had experienced in high school in my community and said ‘if you put your mind to something, you can also make it here as well’ so I think seeing her do that and having a lot of energy and not necessarily knowing where to channel it, gave me an idea what I could do for myself.”

Hogan-Rochester was part of Kévin Rouet’s Canada squad last Friday as they played the Black Ferns in Round 2 of the Pacific Four Series. Their recent form against the six-time world champions had been strong. A maiden win over New Zealand in 2024 was followed by a 27-27 draw one year later and, at last year’s Women’s Rugby World Cup, the North Americans romped to a 34-19 semi-final victory.

Unfortunately for Canada, last Friday night’s game ended in a 36-14 defeat, despite the 27-year-old being one of the try scorers. Canada led 14-5 after the opening 40 minutes before they ultimately fell to New Zealand as they struggled to keep up with the Kiwis’ dominance in defence and attack.

The Black Ferns’ victory means that Whitney Hansen’s team have overtaken Canada in the World Rugby rankings for second place and pushed Canada down to third. Despite that loss to the Black Ferns, Asia has still been enjoying the tournament and playing with their best mates on the world stage.

“I’ve been so excited for the tournament to begin,” they said. “It’s been awesome to just play with a lot of youngsters. A lot of new folks have either entered the squad or have come back into the team after a little break or just reconnecting after the World Cup. It means a lot to be part of the Pacific Four.

“Some of those players are my friends, close friends that I’ve spoken to and known about my whole rugby career. With that being said, though, I think our Canadian standards still haven’t changed. Last year, our aim was to win the Pacific Four and the year before that, we did win Pacific Four. We still hold that same ambition this year.”

Hogan-Rochester signed for Sale Sharks in 2025 and immediately felt aligned with the club’s vision. They have embraced the club’s ambition and team culture from the outset. They quickly settled into the squad, bringing energy, physicality and a strong work ethic that complements the team’s style of play. All while adding valuable international experience to the group.

“I spoke with a few different clubs, but they were the first and only club to lead with their team culture,” Hogan-Rochester said. “Over at Sale, the team culture and who you are as a person, really is at the centre of rugby. Fast forward to now, I think that’s really shown in the way that we play. We’ve come away with a lot of wins and a lot of those wins came down to how we play with each other and how we pick each other back up.

“It wasn’t always necessarily about having blowout games and just scoring so many points, but it really was about staying in it and staying in the fight. Being able to grind it out in the last 15 to 20 minutes of a game. I’m really happy with the decision that I made. I think I made the right one”.

Despite their career success Hogan-Rochester still had to face and endure challenges on their journey to professional rugby.

“I think being a person of colour and being a queer person as well, it was hard,” they said. “It is important to be able to be in those spaces so that someone else can see you in them. I think that’s why Charity was so helpful for me because she looked like me as well.

Pacific Four Series

P

W

L

D

PF

PA

PD

BP T

BP-7

BP

Total

1

New Zealand Women

2

2

0

0

10

2

Canada Women

2

1

1

0

5

3

USA Women

2

1

1

0

5

4

Australia Women

2

0

2

0

0

“There might have been times where I might have been the only black person on a team. There might have been times when I was the newest person to the sport, and I didn’t understand the team huddles.

“I had to learn from other people. I learned a lot because it wasn’t always something that I was so privy to. I’m just really grateful now that I get to be a person that other people can look up to, like Charity kind of was for me in a way.”

Hogan-Rochester plays with a dynamic blend of composure and intensity that makes them a key contributor for Canada. They bring a strong defensive presence, using their athleticism and awareness to disrupt opponents.

With ball-in-hand, they are versatile and confident. They can adapt quickly under pressure and always play with a smile on their face.

“I love how much it [rugby] mimics life,” Hogan-Rochester said. “There’s so many comparisons you can make in the game of rugby with life. You can’t do it alone. If you get tackled and you get knocked down, you have to get back up not only for yourself, but for your teammates as well.

“It’s almost like it’s your responsibility to do so. I just love how creative the sport is, too and how innovative it is, especially being a Canadian rugby player and being a Canadian winger. It’s the best job.

“It’s the best job in the world. We are so creative and we really get to innovate the sport and I think that’s also what life is about. I’d definitely say the parallels between the two is what I love most about the game.”