Marlie's journey to 100
Marlie Packer will win her 100th England cap when she captains the Red Roses in their Six Nations opener against Italy
Marlie began her rugby journey at Ivel Barbarians when she was five and stayed there until 2013 when she moved to Wasps, before joining Bristol three years later. In 2014, she was part of the Red Roses side which won the World Cup for the second time, scoring twice against Ireland in the semi-final after replacing Maggie Alphonsi.
She played an integral role in the 2017 World Cup, impressing in the group stage wins over Italy and the USA, against whom she scored twice from the ever-effective Red Rose maul. Her incredible defensive performance against France helped England to a fourth consecutive final which she also started as her side agonisingly missed out in a 41-32 defeat to New Zealand.
Soon after the World Cup, Marlie joined Saracens in a move which immediately bore fruit; she scored a phenomenal six tries on her club debut.
The move to London continued to be a success as Marlie scored 23 tries in just two seasons to help Saracens win back-to-back league titles in 2018 and 2019.
Taking on the captaincy for the firs time at the 2021 World Cup, she stood in against South Africa and showed great pace and power to score in the Red Roses’ final group game. Not content with the one try, she went onto score three as England dispatched Australia in the quarter-finals, before scoring the opening try in the tightly-fought semi-final victory over Canada.
Featuring in yet another final, Marlie scored to keep her side ahead against the Black Ferns before they ultimately lost out to their old rivals by just three points.
A new era
Marlie began her 2022 Six Nations campaign with a bang, scoring a hat-trick against Scotland in the opening game and once against Ireland as the Red Roses won the Grand Slam. Following the retirement of Sarah Hunter, Marlie was announced as captain of the Red Roses in 2023 and she took to her new leadership role with ease.
Two tries off the back of mauls against Italy and one against Ireland set Packer’s Red Roses on course for a title decider against France - yet another Six Nations Grand Slam. With the title on the line, Marlie played the entire game amid a tight encounter, which her team won 38-33, clinching yet another Slam.
Fast forward to autumn and the powerful flanker led her team to New Zealand in their hunt for better fortune at the inaugural WXV1 tournament. After dispatching Australia, where she scored twice from the back of the ever-effective rolling mauls, and Canada, the captain’s side faced the Black Ferns in a replay of that fateful day one year previous.
Going into the game, the Red Roses were looking to banish the demons of two successive World Cup final defeats at the hands of their opponents. The 33-12 victory under her leadership saw her become the first ever captain to lift the WXV1 trophy.
Following the historic victory on her 99th appearance, Packer was awarded the World Rugby Women's 15s Player of the Year award, capping off an unbeaten year for the Red Roses and setting the stage for a hotly-anticipated Six Nations campaign in 2024.
