Rachel Malcolm: 'It was the most together we've been as a squad'

In a thrilling match at Mattioli Woods Welford Road, Loughborough Lightning picked up a bonus-point win and their first league points of the season, beating Leicester Tigers in the first-ever derby game between the two sides. Loughborough and Scotland captain Rachel Malcolm was named Premiership Women’s Rugby (PWR) player of the match in the 24-12 win against their local rivals in round three.

In October, Scotland secured three wins in three games in the first WXV 2 tournament, beating hosts South Africa, the USA, and Japan. The final standings came down to points difference with Italy, in which Scotland came out on top to claim the title. Their WXV victories contributed to six consecutive wins for the first time since 2001.

Malcolm spoke to RugbyPass before kick-off in Leicester about Scotland’s WXV 2 win and how this year’s PWR league is the most competitive league to date.

“We obviously had a tough couple of years,” Malcolm said on reflection. “But one thing that’s super special about Scotland and most Scotland teams is their ability to stick together through tough times and I think the experience we’ve had over the last four years puts us in really good stead in South Africa.

“It was probably the most together we’ve been as a squad in terms of every single person on that tour being fully bought into what Scotland were trying to achieve. It was definitely the most cohesive we felt and I think we had a real firm understanding of our wider purpose there and our ‘why’ which really drove us to succeed on and off the pitch.

“To go out there, win, and create our own bit of history was incredible,” she continued. “I think although we had those string of losses, the performances were not far away and a number of those losses were under seven points – we knew that we weren’t a million miles away. I’m super proud of the girls for sticking together and keeping that belief through that tough time.”

In recent seasons, Loughborough Lightning have struggled to string together a run of form in the domestic league and have not finished higher than fourth since the 2020/2021 season. However, Malcolm is confident that this season will see her team move up the table now the squad is under new coaching staff and believes this league is the most competitive it’s ever been.

“The league is more competitive than ever and it definitely feels that way both on and off the pitch. This young team has got so much to prove as individuals,” she emphasised. “The more that we play together and work together as a team, our wins will come. We’ve got to believe in that and we are working extremely hard – this has probably been some of the toughest training I’ve done as a player and I think a lot of the girls that were here whilst we were away at the WXV competition, would definitely agree with that.

“We are working extremely hard to push this team in the right direction and Nathan [Smith] at the helm is driving every single aspect of that which is super. Having that new energy and enthusiasm is great – he’s got a different coaching style to a lot of the coaches I’m used to but his passion is exactly what this young team needs and I’m super excited to see where we’re going to go. We definitely have aspirations of moving up the table but we’ve got to get the performance right before we can do that.

“This competition isn’t just about having good players on the pitch and having a good game plan, it’s about having the ability to dig in when you’re in purple patches in games. When the going gets tough, we don’t really get going but Nathan has instilled this belief. Also, how hard you have to work, both physically and mentally in games at this level to win. That is the nature of playing a young team, not everyone has that experience.

“He’s tried to create opportunities within training to really expose people in that tough environment and situation so when you are faced with them in a game, you can overcome them. I would probably say that’s a big difference to how we’ve played in the past couple of years which Nathan is trying to change going forward. We’ve definitely still got a long way to go but I definitely think we’re moving in the right direction.”

Despite the new PWR campaign only beginning, it won’t be too long before attention turns to the women’s Six Nations which begins on the 23rd of March 2024. Malcolm mentioned strength in depth will play a “massive part” in how Scotland will continue to build as a group.

“I think we are in a strong place moving forward, particularly in our depth of squad as well,” the back row said. “The amount of girls playing in the PWR this season is probably going to be exactly what we need going into the women’s Six Nations in 2024. We’ve got more players than ever down here playing and getting exposure to what is now the best league in the world without a doubt.

“I think every single match is as tough and as physical as any international game so to have that exposure across our full playing squad is going to be brilliant prep, particularly with our younger and inexperienced players – they’re getting the match exposure they need and so our are wider squad players, too.

“I think to go and compete in a Six Nations, you need a full 30 and beyond that to be playing and training at that top level. I think the biggest step forward in the last couple of years is the depth within every single position – we’ve got competition for shirts across the board and we’ve got wider squad players fighting for positions as well.”

Loughborough Lightning will next play last season’s semi-finalists Bristol Bears at cinch Stadium at Franklin’s Gardens on the 9th of December. Scotland will first face Wales on the opening day of the women’s Six Nations on 23rd of March 2023.