Keevy Fitzpatrick: 'Until I got there it was hard to see myself being there'

Keevy Fitzpatrick is another one of those young up-and-coming England age grade internationals looking to make the most of her opportunities this season.

Already 2025/26 has been full of firsts, plenty of promise and signs of what could be around the corner.

Upon signing a long-term contract with her Premiership Women’s Rugby club, Loughborough Lightning, Fitzpatrick was described as “high potential” by her head coach, Nathan Smith.

That potential has been recognised by the Red Roses too. After impressing in England U21 Women camps, the 20-year-old second row was called into the first senior England camp of 2026

“Me, Annabel [Meta], Jas [Adroni] and Hayley [Jones], we got brought over after a training session and we were sweating after a hard session,” Fitzpatrick recalled.

“Hayts [Charlie Hayter, England Rugby’s Head of Women’s Performance] was just like, can I borrow you all for a second? We were just like, what is going on? We were told, next week you’re going to connections to camp. We were just lost for fords.

“Niamh [O’Donovan], our analyst, was watching and waiting for our reactions. She was like, you did not look happy with that news at all. It seems so serious. It seems really scary before you’ve been in one.”

Already a string of players from that first England camp of 2026 have made their international debuts at this Guinness Women’s Six Nations as injuries and absences have seen John Mitchell test his depth.

The camp was also an opportunity for Fitzpatrick to keep following in the footsteps of her club teammate, Lilli Ives Campion. Heading into this year’s Women’s Six Nations the 22-year-old was expected to get increased match minutes for England before injury has limited her availability.

As role models for Fitzpatrick go, Ives Campion is the perfect one. Still a teenager when she made her Loughborough debut, while also being a regular feature in England squads, the 22-year-old has established herself as one of PWR’s top performers this season and become a consistent source of inspiration.

“In my first year [with Loughborough] I was probably a lot more nervous than I am now so I wouldn’t have gone up to her then,” Fitzpatrick smiled. “And I wasn’t involved in the lineouts very much.

“The last two years I’ve had more contact with her, but especially this year. She’ll come up to me and Tamsin [Baynes] and she’ll be like; these are the defensive pictures I need to see. She’ll analyse whoever we’re playing and tell us that we need to run something. It’s just crazy the amount that goes on in her head.”

Even during a season in which Fitzpatrick has seen her stock rise rapidly, the 20-year-old is not getting ahead of herself. Her role has not changed. And pressure? No bad thing.

“I wouldn’t say pressure in a negative way,” Fitzpatrick said. “It’s always a motivator if I’m getting someone say so many good things about me. I can’t then show up and not meet their expectations. But it doesn’t stress me out.”

From Clacton to the world

From virtually the moment Fitzpatrick found rugby she was hooked. The 20-year-old is one of 10 children raised in Clacton-on-Sea by her father, Sean.

Each sibling had their own sport. Several play football, one competed in athletics, another prefers boxing. Having never really found her sport, when Fitzpatrick’s younger brothers were asked if they wanted to go around the corner to Clacton RUFC, she demanded to go too.

It was an instant hit and the club proved to be the perfect insulator for the youngster.

“We had a special move with me and two of the other boys who were the strongest ball carriers,” Fitzpatrick. “It was called ‘KFC’ because it was Keevy, Finn and Connor, and I felt like I was seen and had a role. It made me love the game more.

“I remember at one of the first tournaments I was in, our head coach [Grant Jarmain] got told by other coaches that they would not play if a girl was on the team. He was like, she’s our strongest ball carrier, so give her five minutes.

“There was one time where I tackled someone and they didn’t like it. They got up off the floor and thrown the ball at me. Like three of the boys jumped over me on the floor and started shoving me. Everyone had my back in some capacity.”

Eventually Clacton could not provide a steady base for Fitzpatrick. As soon as girls and boys could no longer play rugby alongside one another, she was travelling to Colchester and later Sudbury to play rugby.

It was only when A-Levels came around, and the prospect of a move away from Essex reared its head, that Fitzpatrick had the opportunity to really test herself on the pitch. And Loughborough, as it has been for so many others over the years, was the perfect place to do just that.

“I always wanted to take rugby seriously, but my self-confidence and my belief, coming from a small town, I was like, it is never going to be an opportunity for me,” Fitzpatrick said.

“It was between Loughborough and a university closer to home. The rugby was the only reason I chose Loughborough. I’m so lucky I chose Loughborough because it actually opened so many doors for me.”

Fitzpatrick chuckles when recalling how far she has come. It was only a couple of years ago that Lightning’s coach Nathan Smith asked her to not be involved with the lineout. A year later she was leading it for England U20 against South Africa.

She has worked for every opportunity. Her growth has been exponential at every stage. The 20-year-old was never involved in pathways or county rugby before moving to the East Midlands. That is possibly another reason why Fitzpatrick has found new levels of belief at every stage.

“I started in BUCS 2,” Fitzpatrick said. “I remember getting a text to come to BUCS 1 and I was on the bench for my first game. It was Durham away. I just remember having a crazy line break.

“I was so nervous for that game. After I’d done it, I could actually be in BUCS 1 and it wouldn’t be strange. I wouldn’t stick out. Not long after that is when Nathan called me up to train with Lightning. Until I got there it was hard to see myself being there.”

Finishing the U21 Series on a high

This Sunday, Fitzpatrick and her England U21 teammates will conclude their Six Nations Women’s U21 Series campaign against France.

Coming into the clash it is the French that are favourites having scored 189 points in two matches and conceded only five. A weekend ago in Tarbes, France beat Scotland 113-0.

Should England harbour any hopes of winning the Series, they must beat France and not allow their opponents any bonus points at Bedford’s Goldington Road. LJ Lewis’ team will also be on the lookout for a favour from Wales, who host Niamh Briggs’ Ireland at Ystrad Mynach.

Last time out Ireland frustrated England in Coventry. In a contest with plenty of twists and turns at Nick Newbold Stadium, Ireland found a way to contend with three yellow cards to win 41-40.

“I was gutted,” Fitzpatrick admitted. “That’s the biggest crowd I’ve ever played in front of. I almost felt like we let them down by not winning. The Red Roses have gone back-to-back for how long now?

“I was just like; they’ve probably come here to watch who will be the next Red Roses and they’ve not got what they were expecting.

“On the other hand, it seemed like Ireland were hungrier for it. So, it almost wasn’t a shock that they did win.”

Even though Ireland left the West Midlands with a full five points in their back pockets, England did gain a valuable pair of points. It is thanks to those two points that they chance at winning the inaugural Six Nations Women’s U21 Series is well and truly alive.

France will, of course, pose a stern threat. The side have scored 29 tries in just two matches. Although there is a feeling that such dominance could also be their undoing.

“We are driving our set-piece this week,” Fitzpatrick said. “We know we can scrum, we can lineout, we can maul – that’s one of our strongest points. With France they are maybe less strong.

“We’ve looked at the last few games and how the scoreline has been closer for us and we think this has prepared us well. Whereas France are maybe a bit complacent.

“If our scoreline was that every week it wouldn’t feel that challenging. You’d go in with false confidence.”

Almost just as soon as it began the Six Nations Women’s U21 Series will have finished. All that stands in the way is the toughest match of the tournament and the potential of winning the entire thing.

And Fitzpatrick knows exactly how her teammates will react should everything go their way on Sunday.

“It would be crazy,” she said. “Incredible. I know all the girls would go crazy. And, for a lot of the girls, there’s five that have been in Under-18s and Under-21s together the whole time and this will be their final game. I think if they were able to end on a win, it would be almost magical for them.”