England captain Zoe Aldcroft leads at HQ for Grand Slam title
It’s a memorable day for Zoe Aldcroft as she leads the Red Roses out for the first time as their captain at Allianz Stadium and takes on Les Bleues in the Grand Slam decider.
The powerful flanker made her debut against France in 2016 and today hopes to retain England’s Six Nations title, held since 2019.
She’s had a formidable campaign so far, scoring last weekend against Scotland. Intercepting an opposition pass, she raced down the pitch from the half-way line for a world-class try.
“I think it’s going to be super special,” she said of today’s encounter. “The last time we played at Allianz it was in front of a record-breaking crowd, so to be able to run out in front of so many fans will be amazing.
“My first ever memory of playing at The Home of England Rugby was for Northumbria University in the BUCS final. We played against Cardiff Metropolitan, Tatyana Heard and Jade Shekells were the centres, I’ll always remember that day.
“I actually kept a bit of the dirt from my boots. I had it in my room and my dad put it in the bin. I said ‘where is it?’ and he told me he’d thrown it away, so I made him go out and get it!”
Aldcroft has captained England many times, the first on her 25th birthday in a 89-0 win over the USA. But since being named as captain at the start of the year, her confidence as a leader has grown and she brings new qualities to the role.
“Before, I was always nervous standing up at meetings, while on the pitch it came naturally. Now I’m really getting into it, and I don’t feel as nervous when I stand up in a room full of the girls,” she said.
“I bring a calmness to my captaincy. I’m also a lead by example kind of captain. I like to make sure that every time I’m out on the pitch I’m giving it my all, so that the girls can do the same.
“I always think back to when I first came in and I had no idea what goes into playing at international level. I rocked up on the pitch, tried not to look around, and just went for it. Now I’m so much more aware of the game, things that are happening and how we can potentially get the better of our opponents. I have so much more awareness, knowledge and experience around the game.”
Sharing a friendship since they were 16, Aldcroft and fellow Red Rose Sarah Bern went on to earn their first cap together and remain integral members of the England squad.
Said Aldcroft: “We’ve been friends ever since we were 16 at Hartpury College and lived in the same block. We got invited to a Red Roses forwards camp and built up our friendship from there and have been roommates ever since. It’s been amazing that we’ve shared our England journeys together, and that we’re still here now.
“We used to be these young girls, totally inexperienced. On one occasion we had a terrible session, and we just looked at each other like ‘if we need to punch each other later, then we will.’ We’ve been through all the tough times together and it’s great that we are still there together but with more experience behind us.”
Looking ahead to the World Cup later this year, Aldcroft said: “It’s important for us to keep evolving. I want us to be a team that’s relentless, keeps fighting for each other, progressing in an environment that everyone can thrive in.”
After last weekend’s 59-7 win over Scotland she said: "I thought some moments were world-class in our performance. We know we still have so much to work on which is exciting. I'm looking forward to one last week and putting effort into some areas we can improve. I think our maul could be a lot better, and our breakdown as well.”
As for Les Bleues, she’s expecting challenges today. "We know France are super physical, so we're expecting that and we know they love an offloading game so hopefully we’ll be stopping them in those areas."
