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'Unfortunately when I was growing up my role models were male-dominated because that's all we saw on TV'
Chloe Rollie grew up dreaming of being the next Chris Paterson but the Scotland full-back hopes she is the last fresh-faced girl forced to look to the men’s game for inspiration simply because there are no female role models on show.
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The 25-year-old is one of nine professional or semi-professional players in the Dark Blues set-up and now plays for English giants Harlequins having started her career off with Melrose and Murrayfield Wanderers before a stint with French side Lille.
But while she will have television cameras trained on her every move this weekend as the Scots round off their Six Nations campaign against Wales, there was a time not so long ago when Scotland’s women could only dream of such exposure in the mainstream media.
As there was a TV blackout of the female game during her childhood, it was the gun boot of Scotland’s record points scorer Paterson which drew Rollie’s attention.
But thankfully today’s youngsters have a wider choice of stars to identify with as the sport makes strides in bridging the equality gap.
And Rollie hopes that her side – boosted by the efforts of tournament sponsor Guinness, which is bidding to raise the profile of female players – can be the spark which ignites wonderment in Scotland’s next generation.
“When I first started playing for Scotland six years ago there was coverage but nowhere near as good as it is now,” the Jedburgh-raised back told the PA news agency. “You see us on YouTube, Facebook and even TV now – it’s so much better.
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“You’re seeing on social media too. The Scotland men’s Instagram page is now posting pictures relating to the women’s squad too, which is amazing.
“Guinness are also helping to promote female players and make sure they have their own Wikipedia profiles and get verification on social media sites to boost that visibility.
“It’s important that female players are known and visible to fans.
“It’s totally different to when I first started playing. This sounds bad but when I was younger I didn’t even know there was a female Scotland team.
“But it’s massively important that the younger generation can see and have access to games so they can be inspired.
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“Unfortunately when I was growing up my role models were male-dominated because that’s all we saw on TV.
“Chris Paterson was my main hero because he played in my position. I remember watching him a lot growing up.
“I live in Jedburgh and when I was playing mini rugby aged eight or nine there was only a maximum of three girls in my age group.
“But now when I go along to take training sessions at the club there, there’s so many more girls getting involved and wanting to play.”
“So I just think it’s going to be a physical contest. England love to have a good physical defence against the French."
Former England international turned pundit @MaggieAlphonsi is stoked for the conclusion of @Womens6Nations #WomensSixNations ?????????https://t.co/JODEa0IUVT
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) April 23, 2021
Exposure may be on the rise but Scotland’s results are not.
A team who failed to win a single Six Nations game between 2011 and 2016 are on the slump again and will play off for the wooden spoon against the Welsh in Glasgow this weekend having been beaten heavily by England and Italy in this season’s Covid-curtailed competition.
But the women’s game in Scotland remains at an embryonic stage and Rollie stressed it would be wrong to expect too much too soon.
She said: “We’re on the right track. We just need a bit more time to get there.
“It is difficult to play against the likes of England because they’re all full-time athletes. It’s inevitable what’s going to happen because it’s their job.
“I live with two England players and they’re in camp three days a week. Previously we’d be lucky to be in camp two days of a month.
“But we have been increasing our time together. For this tournament, we’ve been in camp for 14 days straight.
“It’s just about time. Results will come.”
:: Guinness is the first Official Partner of the Women’s Six Nations, and is working to increase visibility for both the championship and the players. As part of the brewer’s ‘Never Settle’ initiative, it is working closely with Wikipedia to create profiles for this year’s home nation squads – adding more than 135,000 words to the site.
Comments on RugbyPass
Wow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
1 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
12 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
1 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to commentsWhat a player! Not long until he’s in the England side, surely?
1 Go to commentsHe seems to have the same aura as Marcus Smith - by which I mean he’s consistently judged as if he’s several years younger than he actually is. Mngomezulu has played 24 times for the Stormers. When Pollard was his age he had played 24 times for South Africa! He has more time to develop, but he has also had time to do some developing already, and he hasn’t demonstrated nearly as much talent in that time as one would expect. If he is a generational talent, then it must be a pretty poor generation.
4 Go to commentsThe greatest Springbok coach of all time is entirely on the money. Rassie and Jacques have given the south african public a great few years, but the success of the springbok selection policy will need to be judged in light of what comes next. The poor condition that the provincial system is currently in doesn’t bode well for the next few years of international rugby, and the insane 2026 schedule that the Boks have lined up could also really harm both provincial and international consistency.
16 Go to commentsJake White is a brilliant coach and a master in the press. This is another masterclass in media relations and PR but its also a very narrow view with arguments that dont always hold water. White wants his team to win, he wants the best players in SA and wants his team competitive. You however have to face up to the reality of a poor exchange rate and big clubs with big budgets. SA Rugby cant compete and unless it can find more money SA players will keep leaving regardless of Springbok eligibility and this happened in 2015 - 2017. Also rugby is not cricket. Cricket has 3 formats and T20 cricket is where the money is at. When it comes to club vs country the IPL is king but that wont happen because the international calendar does not clash with the club calendar in rugby. So the argument about rugby going down the same path as cricket is really a non-starter
16 Go to commentsNZ rugby seem not to have learnt anything from professional rugby. Super rugby was dying and SA left before they died with the competition. SA rugby did a u turn on their approach to international players playing overseas and such players are now selected for Bok teams. As much as each country would love to retain their players playing in local competitions, this is the way the world is evolving my friends. Move with it or stay 20 years behind the times. One more thing. NZ rugby hierarchy think they are the big cheese. Take a more humble approach guys. You do not seem to have your players best interests at heart.
3 Go to commentsBeaches? In Cardiff? Where?
1 Go to commentsHe is right , the Crusaders will be a threat. Scott Barrett, ( particularly), Fergus Burke , Codie Taylor, ( from sabbatical) etc due back soon for the Crusaders. There are others like Zach Gallagher too. People can right the Crusaders off, Top 8 , here we come !!
1 Go to commentsWe will always struggle for money to match the other sides but the least the WRU can do is invest properly in Welsh rugby. Too much has been squandered on vanity projects like the hotel and roof walk amongst others which will never see a massive return. Hanging the 4 pro sides out to dry over the last decade is now coming back to bite the WRU financially as well as on the pitch. You reap what you sow.
1 Go to commentsWhat do you get if you cross a doctor with a fish? A plastic sturgeon
14 Go to commentsWhat happened to feleti Kaitu’u? Hasnt played in a while right?
1 Go to commentsGregor I just can’t agree with you. You are trying to find something that just isn’t there. Jordie Barrett has signed until 2028. By the end of that he would have spent probably 11-12 years on Super Rugby and you say he can’t possibly have one season playing somewhere else. It is absurd. What about this scenario, the NZR play hard ball and he decides to leave and play overseas. How would that affect the competition. There seems to be an agenda by certain journalists to push certain agendas and don’t like it when it’s not to their liking. I fully support the NZR on this. Gregor needs to get a life.
3 Go to commentsHope he stays as believe he can do a great job.
1 Go to commentsMake what step up? Manie has a World Cup winner’s medal around his neck and changed the way the Springboks can play. He doesn’t have anything to prove to anyone. The win record of the Boks with him in the team is tremendous. Sacha can be wonderful and I hope he has a very succesful Bok career, but comparing him to Manie in terms of the next Bok flyhalf is very strange. Manie is the incumbent (not the next) and doing pretty incredibly.
4 Go to comments00 😍 U
1 Go to commentsSabbaticals have helped keep NZ’s very best talent in the country on long term deals - this fact has been left out of this article. Much like the articles calling to allow overseas players to be selected, yet can only name one player currently not signed to NZR who would be selected for the ABs. And in the entire history of NZ players leaving to play overseas, literally only 4 or 5 have left in their prime as current ABs. (Piatau, Evans, Hayman, Mo’unga,?) Yes Carter got an injury while playing in France 16 years ago, but he also got a tournament ending injury at the 2011 World Cup while taking mid-week practice kicks at goal. Maybe Jordie gets a season-ending injury while playing in Ireland, maybe he gets one next week against the Brumbies. NZR have many shortcomings, but keeping the very best players in the country and/or available for ABs selection is not one of them. Likewise for workload management - players missing 2 games out of 14 is hardly a big deal in the grand scheme of things. Again let’s use some facts - did it stop the Crusaders winning SR so many times consecutively when during any given week they would be missing 2 of their best players? The whole idea of the sabbatical is to reward your best players who are willing to sign very long term deals with some time to do whatever they want. They are not handed out willy-nilly, and at nowhere near the levels that would somehow devalue Super Rugby. In this particular example JB is locked in with NZR for what will probably (hopefully) be the best years of his career, hard to imagine him not sticking around for a couple more after for a Lions tour and one more world cup. He has the potential to become the most capped AB of all time. A much better outcome than him leaving NZ for a minimum of 3 years at the age of 27, unlikely to ever play for the ABs again, which would be the likely alternative.
3 Go to commentsJake White talks more sense than anything I've read in the last 5 years. Hope someone's listening.
16 Go to comments