Rachel Ehrecke: 'I play for more than the fear of failure'

It has been a long wait for Rachel Ehrecke to take part in her first Women’s Rugby World Cup.

Three years ago the 25-year-old was omitted from Rob Cain’s USA Women’s Eagles squad for the delayed 2021 edition of the tournament.

On Friday night the lock forward came off the bench for Tahlia Brody in her team’s 69-7 loss to a supercharged Red Roses in the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup opener and finally achieved her long-held ambition.

“I think I stepped into that mindset (of wanting to play for the USA at a World Cup) back in 2019,” she said.

“In the last World Cup cycle, I was one of the last four people to get cut (from the World Cup training squad).

“You take a moment, you step back into your life, and you ask; are these sacrifices worth it? And you think, hell yeah, I’m going for it.

“So, to be here on this stage at this event, that’s four times bigger than the last one, it is awesome. It’s amazing.”

Ehrecke took up rugby as a 16-year-old while still in high school. Soon she found her way into the USA Under-18s setup and later represented the Under-20s and Under-23s during her collegiate career at Penn State University.

Outside of a brief stint with former Premiership Women’s Rugby club DMP Sharks, the Iowa native has spent the majority of her senior club career in Colorado. Most recently the 25-year-old helped the Denver Onyx to the first ever Women’s Elite Rugby crown.

Throughout it all Ehrecke’s motivation was to take part in a first World Cup.

“You feel the driving factor to get you back on that stage because you don’t want to feel it (rejection) again,” Ehrecke said.

“Every time you step onto the pitch for your club teams back home and when you’re doing your conditioning in the offseason and at the gym.

“There are so many things that motivate you. I play for more than the fear of failure. I play for my family. I play for myself. I want to make everyone around me proud as well as myself.”

Following a heavy defeat to England in the north east, the Eagles will lick their wounds and have another week’s preparation before they take on Australia in York.

In Jo Yapp’s Wallaroos the Eagles come up against a familiar opponent. Regularly pitted against one another in the Pacific Four Series, both sides having won two games each in the past four meetings, with the USA losing their most recent clash 27-19 in Canberra.

Combine that with the Australian’s 73-0 dismantling of Samoa and it is a hard task that the USA have ahead of them in England.

With the disappointment of defeat to the Red Roses close by, Ehrecke still has full faith that her teammates can find a new level and keep their aim of gaining at least a quarter-final berth alive.

“I think we left (Sunderland) a little unsatisfied,” Ehrecke said. “We knew this was going to be a really big game and we wanted to bring the physicality right back to England. We know we had a lot more to give.

“Even after something like today I see the potential that we can play with, and I still believe that we can take this thing so much further.

“So, we’re looking forward to the next match. I really am. Because I know we’re going to turn up another notch.”