Hannah Botterman aims to be the best in the world at the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup
England star Hannah Botterman has set her sights on establishing herself as the best loosehead prop in the world by the end of the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup.
Botterman shone in England’s 69-7 victory over the United States in Sunderland. This was the start of a campaign in which the Red Roses present themselves as the clear favorites to win the entire tournament.
Botterman scored the second of England’s 11 tries and, although she was delighted with the team’s effort, she also has personal goals. “I’ve worked very hard during the preseason to get in good shape. I don’t want to be shy about the fact that I want to be the best left pillar in the world. I want to consolidate it in this tournament. For me, it was a good start, but I feel like I can still give a lot more.”
Botterman joked: “Obviously, commentators love Ellie Kildunne, so… She does all the good stuff, so yeah.”
England faced a United States team that included Hope Rogers, considered one of the best loosehead props in the world. “Obviously, Hope is a very good player, she plays very well week in, week out in the Premiership. But I don’t want there to be any question [as to whether Botterman is the best prop in the world], to be honest.”Hannah Botterman scored a try in England’s big 69-7 victory over the United States.Paul Harding/Getty Images“I think I’m in the conversation and now I just want to keep going and keep improving. Everyone can improve everywhere, but for a long time, my scrummaging wasn’t the best. I’ve really worked on that and I think it’s an area of strength now.
“Regarding the attack, I’m happy; defensively I think I can be a little stronger and assert my weight a little more. I feel physically in very good shape, now it’s just about delivering the performances. I’ve put myself in a physically capable place. It’s just about whether I can produce what I want to produce. The desire has always been there, but I feel like I can do a little more now and I hope that has been shown on the field.
“But ultimately, I want the team to do as well as possible, and if I perform well within that, with your Ellie Kildunnes performing well, your Sadia Kabeyas, your Meg Jones, if everyone performs, then we’ll be in a very good place. It’s been top-notch.”
Botterman also paid tribute to the work that scrum coach, Nathan Catt, has done at the camp.
“Catty has been great. She has brought us a lot of experience. She works very well with the complexities of the first lines and what we want to do. She has been fundamental for us, and having someone who specifically takes care of that area has benefited us.”
In general, Botterman was pleased with England’s performance in the first round and was delighted to play in front of a record crowd in Sunderland.
“We are very fortunate to be in the position we are in now. Seeing all the people who came before us and who really worked to put us in this position, we obviously benefit from that now, but if it weren’t for them, we wouldn’t be here. Now we have to enjoy it.”
