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Larissa Lima Henwood: The incredible journey to play for Brazil at the Rugby World Cup
This is a very brief summary of Larissa Lima Henwood’s life: Born in Brazil, raised in Portugal. Began playing rugby for local side Agrária de Coimbra. Won four Portuguese Premiership titles (and two Iberian cups). Played for Portugal (Lobas) 7s. Played in the Uni World Cup of 2016. Tore her ACL. Moved to New Zealand. Played for Counties Manukau.
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Played for Pt Chevalier Pirates based in Auckland. Won the Auckland Championship. Came close to playing in the Rugby League World Cup but tore her ACL a second time. Gave birth to Skye. Recovered from her injuries, worked hard and earned a call up to play for Brazil. Debuted as a Yara in November 2024.
The Counties Manukau and Brazil’s loose forward is someone who has gone beyond human limits to reach her goals. With the World Cup on the horizon, Lima Henwood goes all the way back to the early 2010s to tell us how it all started.
“Escola Agrária de Coimbra was my first club and rugby experience. I was 14, and my mother thought it was a good idea for me to be involved with a sport,” she begins.
“Rugby caught my attention when I lived in Wales for a year. I wanted to try it, but the boys kept telling me that I couldn’t play because I was a girl. That only made me want it more.”
She would quickly earn her place in the team and collect her first title in her first year. However, if not for someone special in her life, she almost came close to giving it all up.
“I remember getting home bruised, completely energy drained and tired, and saying to my mother, ‘I am going to give up!’ and she would bluntly reply with a ‘No, you aren’t going to give up. You are going to keep playing rugby’. She was right, and I have no problem acknowledging it. She supported me every step of the way, especially on the worst days.”
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Born in Brazil, she never thought about representing Portugal at any level, which made it even a bigger shock when she was called up for the sevens national team in 2012.
At the time, she was not able to be capped by the national team as she was waiting for her citizenship, but went to the camp which would turn out to play a vital role in her life.
Lima Henwood would have to wait four years to debut for Portugal, which finally happened in the Elche 7s tournament.
“Imagine taking part in every camp for four consecutive years and not being able to officially play. I had to patiently wait, which isn’t easy when you are a young player.” she said.
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“Finally, the day came when I got the chance to sing ‘A Portuguesa’ and represent a country that embraced me from the first moment.”
In 2017 she moved from Portugal to New Zealand to join her now-husband, Sam Henwood, who was playing for the Counties Manukau and Waikato Chiefs.
“Moving to New Zealand gave me a new perspective, mainly on how the game should be played. I had to broaden my horizons to understand not only my role in the game, but also that of my teammates. It was like discovering rugby for the first time again.”
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Moving to Black Ferns territory didn’t make her flinch, it had the opposite effect. She joined Auckland’s Ardmore Marist rugby club expecting at least to be repositioned as a backline unit.
Although she made it into the team, Larrisa Lima Henwood had to undergo a few changes.
“I weighed 63 kg, which was too light to have any sort of big impact in New Zealand rugby. I had to toughen up and get mentally ready to withstand the increase in raw physicality whilst lightening up while training, completely the opposite of what I experienced until I arrived in New Zealand. We had music in the middle of the practices, people talked and tried to have fun. I had to relearn and adapt to a new reality.”
After some time, Lima worked hard in the gym and eventually gained ten kilograms of lean mass, which was ‘enough’ for her to win the Counties Manukau number seven jersey.
“I had to work long hours to gain those extra kilos, but it allowed me to go to a new level. It was a living proof that everything is possible. It didn’t matter if I was born in Brazil and raised in Portugal, I could play at a high level in one of the biggest rugby countries in the world.”
Her impact was felt in the Ardmore Marist setup, grabbing the attention of Counties Manukau head coach, who added her to the provincial side squad.
“I came from a very amateurish rugby background, and I started ‘late’. To be able to get a chance to play for one of the most historical teams in New Zealand rugby, and as the first Brazilian-Portuguese player, was an incredible feat.”
Some years passed until 2021, a year drenched with excitement, victories, non-stop rugby and sadness.
“That was a crazy, insane year. I got a message from José Alpuim asking if I was keen to come to Brazil to play for the national Rugby League team. I had no idea of their existence until that moment. Being me, I told them I was interested in playing for the national team, but that I couldn’t move to Brazil full-time.”
And the insanity starts here.
“So, I decided to practice union every Tuesday and Thursday, and go to league practice on Wednesday and Friday. Union games on Saturday, and league on Sundays. After the first weekend, I was dead. I had bruises all over my body, and I had to learn to do different things at the same time.”
However, the greyest of clouds came right after and just before making her debut for the Brazil Rugby League national team.
In the last game before the start of the season, she tore her ACL. She was forced to watch Brazil’s Rugby League World Cup campaign from home.
However, there was a silver lining. She had made contact with then-Brazil sevens head coach Will Broderick, who told her that Brazil’s XVs programme was about to start. In her head, a plan began to unfold.
“I got pregnant with Skye in 2023 and made my return to play in May of 2024. I had ‘just’ one goal: to play for Brazil. I remember waking up at four am to watch them play against Colombia. They needed to win that game to qualify for the Rugby World Cup. When the match official ended the game, I was frantically jumping in my home, whilst my husband and daughter were sleeping.
“I was already seeing myself wearing that gold and green jersey and playing for my country in the World Cup. The goal was set, and now I had to get down to work.”
Her journey to become a Yara came with a handful of obstacles and challenges of every kind, but none were able to bring her down.
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“I had to stay with my daughter in New Zealand, whilst Sam had to go to play in Japan. If I wanted to play for Brazil, I needed game time, and unfortunately, in Japan, I couldn’t as there was no club nearby.
“My grandma, a warrior herself, made the sacrifice to leave Brazil to join me in New Zealand to help look after Skye while I was training. I would work from home in the morning, go to the gym at lunchtime, and then join my teammates later on.”
However, fate decided to place an extra challenge in her way.
“I asked to have a meeting with the Counties Manukau staff to figure out if I was going to make the team that year or not. As I was still breastfeeding, I had to know what changes I had to make to be part of the squad. But what came next slightly shattered my belief… I wasn’t going to be included in the 28-player squad.
“They rightfully prioritised the players who were with the team since April. I felt like a dagger had been placed in my heart.”
But Larissa Lima Henwood being Larissa Lima Henwood, couldn’t just give up.
“The only solution for me was to play for Counties Manukau ‘B’ team. But I wasn’t happy with it. I felt that I belonged to a level above, and that playing for the secondary team was a downgrade. When I look back on that moment, I feel ashamed for the way I felt.”
And then came the next curveball: she was awarded the captaincy for the second side.
“I suddenly understood why. Because I was the most experienced player on the roster. Every player respected me and regarded me highly, and I was acting like a spoiled child.
“It was the push I needed to believe once again. The game is bigger than playing for the main squad. I quickly found a new side of myself. I had to be a leader, an example, and a guide. That experience was crucial to me.”
Lima Henwood was added to the main squad later but couldn’t play in the playoffs as she hadn’t played more than one game in the first leg of the competition. Thus, she contacted the Brazilian Rugby Union to find out if they needed a seasoned flanker.
“I sent my resume to the head coach, Emiliano Caffera, just to test the waters. He replied with a ‘How did you get this number?’ message, and I was like ‘Oh, it isn’t starting well!’. Thankfully, he didn’t take it badly. He added me to the WhatsApp group, and he asked me if I was willing to come to the November tour. I replied with a simple, Yes.”
A couple of months later, she joined the squad in the Netherlands, debuting in the first match of the tour. A special and unforgettable moment for her.
“I cried every single second of the national anthem. I always wanted to play for Brazil. I love Portugal, but I was born in Brazil.
“My whole family lives there, and I missed the 2016 Rio Olympics because of my first ACL. Being a mother and having made so many sacrifices to just be there made everything more emotional.”
Reaching the Rugby World Cup means much more to her than just playing in the game’s grandest tournament. It can change narratives for all women.
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Lima Henwood will arrive in Brazil in May with her daughter to join a camp that will last until August. For her, the Yaras can easily be defined as pure fireworks in the form of a rugby team.
“We are an exciting team to watch. We like to take risks. Yes, we love scrummaging and the ruck niggling, but it is the risk taking that defines us.
“I am so eager to join them. We have a superb mix of players, from pure former track athletes to SVNS World Series stars. It is like our flag, vibrant, colorful, and exciting.”
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That’s a great story, so many hops and after seeing the last name and province, thought it had missed out a big one, marriage. But boy was her time in NZ an adventure on it’s own! Much love to Grandma.
PS; Seems a bit off not getting a sabbatical to have a baby, should have been straight back in where you left off. Great attitude, don’t be ashamed.