Brown: 'You’re like ‘why?’, it was literally for nothing'
Former England and Harlequins prop Shaunagh Brown admitted that last year’s World Cup loss against New Zealand was “gutting” but is hopeful that rugby can attract new audiences.
Despite being a player down and leading for most of the final, the Red Roses fell to a heart-breaking 34-31 defeat against the Black Ferns, with Ayesha Leti-I’iga scoring the winning try.
Now retired from the sport, Brown was one of the members of that World Cup squad and she admitted the loss was initially difficult to take.
The 33-year-old told the PA news agency: “It was gutting, as soon as that final whistle went I just looked around and thought ‘just get me home right now, I want to be teleported home – there’s no need for me to be here, there’s no need for me to be in this country anymore, we’ve done our job – we lost – just get me home now’.
“You think back to the summer training of throwing up on the pitch and nearly fainting because you knackered yourself so much and running around in the 30 degree heat in the summer in Bath training camps that we had for the past couple of summers.
“You’re like ‘why?’, it was literally for nothing – which is a massive over-exaggeration because then you get home and you hear about people who have got up to watch it, they had watch parties, you had pubs opening up at 5 o’clock in the morning and just having so much impact.”
England’s attention swiftly shifted to this year’s Six Nations tournament, where they are looking to defend their title and are so far two wins from two going into Saturday’s clash against Wales.
The Roses have so far played home games at Newcastle and Northampton and they will finish the competition against France at Twickenham, which is hoped will beat the 42,579 attendance at last year’s World Cup final at Eden Park.
Brown added: “Just taking rugby to people as well, because not everyone can get to south west London for a couple of hours of rugby and then go home again without spending a small fortune to transport your whole family down from any further north than the Watford Gap.
“So it’s just getting people watching and those who want to watch, sometimes take it to them and that’s where the growth is going to come.”
Having trained as a firefighter and previously competed at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in the hammer, Brown only started playing rugby at the age of 25, making her England Test debut against Canada in 2017.
Although she finished her international rugby career with that World Cup defeat, she still found competing in the tournament a career highlight.
She said: “The highlight of my England career would certainly be playing in a World Cup final and getting the chance to play because even growing up, my first goal was to play in a World Cup.
“So to be on the pitch was a big deal for me and especially because the year previous I wasn’t being selected in the England team.
“Then not playing in those first couple of games, it hurts, you worked yourself up to become the best you can be physically and pretty much to be told you’re not good enough by not being picked, but then getting to play in the last three games, that was a special bit.
“You’re just like ‘well I’ve just played in a World Cup final in front of over 42,000 people’ and yes we lost and that was a very hard thing to take.
“As well, I’m still just a mixed race kid from a single parent home in a council house in Peckham and I’ve been playing the World Cup final in New Zealand.
“It was just like ‘wow, I’ve done alright with my life’.”
::Shaunagh Brown is an ambassador for Wooden Spoon, the children’s charity of rugby who fund life-changing projects to support vulnerable children and young people across the UK and Ireland.
Comments on RugbyPass
I agree ..come on keyboard warriors and journalists looking for a cheap win ….. only 2 mins to go 12 points down …this DID NOT decide the game and beside JM was hit after the whistle and in response it was a pat on the back of the head …harmless ….watch soccer if this is your issue
4 Go to commentsRest is for namby pamby sissies, I see. True men should overcome their trifling injuries by playing week in, week out. Bidwell’s stance reminds me of a Jon Gadsby character from the 70s, a rugby captain giving an after-match speech: “It was a very physical contest. One of our players caught a boot on the back of his head in a ruck, and he died, actually. But to his credit, he played on.”
1 Go to commentsI still see nothing in Sotutus play that hes changed his upright running style that failed so many times against decent international defences like the french. Other than that… Iose? Well you have covered his limitations well. If Sititi had been playing the the season… Jacobson? Grace?…Neither shout pick me. So Ardie it is.
1 Go to commentsThere isn’t one element you mentioned there that every top class or successful team gets up to. The great All blacks sides used to play on the ‘fringes or edge’ but it was essentially saying they were doing something illegal or borderline to gain dominance. The fine margins at the top are minute between the top sides. La Rochelle, the crusaders, Saracens, Toulon etc etc…..have all been accused. Get over it, the comment comes across as salty and naive. Northampton as well as they played to get back into the match were thoroughly beaten and controlled for 60 minutes and Leinster have only themselves to blame for kicking it away and hence losing control of the match and being nearly the architects of their own downfall.
2 Go to commentsThere is some talent coming thru thats for sure. The 10 looks special to me. Rico Simpson is a name to look for in the future.
1 Go to commentsI think this quiet honestly is just an innocent misunderstanding by someone who is pig sh*t stupid. Eben is a fine player but by christ, if he can’t understand or get what the Irish players were trying to say to him after the match…..well i hope he has someone looking after his finances, career and is reading the fine print for him, cause life after rugby may be quite difficult for the vacuous echo chamber.
27 Go to commentsIt could be Doris' day!
3 Go to commentsThe whole thing has blown up because Eben’s words have clearly struck a nerve in Ireland. Otherwise they would just laugh it off. I think some former Irish players, commentators and some Irish fans know deep down this Ireland team started to believe its own press and that a certain amount of arrogance had started to creep in during the World Cup. The topic was actually brought up by Irish pundits on Off the Ball recently. It’s fine to be arrogant if you can back it up. Ireland didn’t.
27 Go to comments‘The Irish are good people'. Why is Goode praising a people who hate his own? Wet wipe.
27 Go to commentsLa mejor final que se puede ver en el emisferio norte.
1 Go to commentsA lot of cope from south africans in the comments. Etzebeth is a liar and a hypocrite; you don’t have to defend him!
27 Go to commentsHe got big and really slow for a flyhalf…not sure he’s relevant in a bok conversation anymore
4 Go to commentsBest tourney team vs best team in the regular season for 3 games in RSA - talk is cheap, let’s see what’s what on the tour
27 Go to commentsOne overlooked statistic from their 2016 winning season is the Huricanes are still the only team in Super rugby history not to concede a try during the playoff rounds.
4 Go to commentsThanks for the article, Nick. The Nienaber blitz D does ask a lot of its scrumhalf. I have been watching JGP on D and he often looks like he has mastered what Nienaber asks for better than Faf de Klerk and Cobus Reinach! 🤣 Impressive season by JGP if I must make an understatement.
22 Go to commentsOkay last one. I promise. I think it’s despicable for Andy Goode to suggest that Eben can’t count to 12. To be fair he only had to count to 8 - the number of Irishmen who DIDN’T say that. Less the 3 kiwis of course. 23 - 12 - 3 = 8. See Joe. I can do maffs.
27 Go to commentsCheers, Nick! How do you see the Reds’ Jock Campbell’s play this year? Not as strong a carrier as Andrew Kellaway or Tom Wright, but does avoid errors. Do you see Joe Schmidt as wanting safety first at 15 or a try-assisting counterattacker?
91 Go to commentsI’m sure this was all just a big misunderstanding. Irishmen and Afrikaaners conversing in a noisey stadium. Not easy to get the right messages across. A minefield.
27 Go to commentsSay what you will about Andy Goode. But he is right about one thing… I’m not sure what that one thing is exactly… but I’m willing to hear him out.
27 Go to commentsAnother article to bait and trigger Irish fans. This must stop.
27 Go to comments