The initial words that Piper Duck heard after injuring her shoulder in March, in a collision that seemed to rule her out for the Women’s Rugby World Cup, were blunt: “You won’t play in the World Cup.”
The Wallaroos’ third-row player’s journey to global competition has been arduous and exhausting. For two years, she has suffered a series of devastating injuries, the last one being almost definitive for her participation in the tournament.
Duck, who was injured playing for the New South Wales Waratahs in the Women’s Super Rugby semi-final earlier this year, thought her World Cup dream was over. Weeks after injuring her left shoulder in the pre-season, which ruled her out of the first match of the year, she suffered another heavy blow, this time with a complete rupture of the acromioclavicular joint in her right shoulder.
It was a devastating blow for the 24-year-old player, who had already overcome a foot injury in 2023, which prevented her from captaining her team despite having been named leader by then-coach Jay Tregonning. Subsequently, she missed the Wallaroos’ tour of Ireland and Wales and the WXV2 tournament at the end of 2024 due to ankle surgery.
To be able to play in 2025, I received cortisone injections in each shoulder.
However, after such a long and hard battle, Duck did not give up so easily. Instead, after consulting surgeons and the team doctor, she had to make a decision: have surgery now and miss the World Cup, or undergo intensive rehabilitation for several months and make a final effort to be selected during the team’s last test matches in July.
“One of the first conversations I had with the doctor was that you wouldn’t play in the World Cup. It was one of my first conversations,” Duck commented before the start of the tournament. “It’s quite shocking to hear that at that moment, but I spoke with some people, got some opinions, and then went to see a surgeon.”
Piper DuckPiper Duck de las Wallaroos es tacleadaDescription: Wallaroos’ Piper Duck is tackled
“I had already made the decision two days before being conservative and two days later I was at the gym. I didn’t know what I was doing, but I was there because I had a very tight deadline to recover.”
“It was an effort. So basically I had three months after a posterior dislocation to get to the World Cup and, fortunately, it worked.”
Given the tight schedule, Duck pushed herself to the limit, determined to wear the Wallaroos jersey in their final World Cup trials. Twelve weeks later, she lined up for the Australia A team to face Samoa, before participating from the bench with the Wallaroos against New Zealand and Wales, and starting in the team’s final match in Sydney.
Given her long list of injuries, the third-line player is almost covered from head to toe in tape when she goes out on the field, with both shoulders protected with pads to protect the joints. And while going to the gym is commonplace for athletes, especially when returning from an injury, Duck knew she also had to overcome a mental aspect of recovery.
“In fact, I spoke with a sports psychologist about it,” Duck said. “I knew my mental block was going to be the carry because that’s how I had gotten injured.”
Piper Duck
“Honestly, not until I started training properly [did I feel confident about my shoulder]. Those first contacts, those first hits [were difficult].Piper Duck de las Wallaroos es tacleadaDescription: Wallaroos’ Piper Duck is tackled
“I would be lying if I said I didn’t have any thoughts, but it wasn’t about my shoulder, but whether I could play football.
“I know it sounds crazy, but after being away for so long, you wonder if you still have it. Obviously, it’s not something you lose, I understand that, but at that moment I had that thought.”
“But in training, I made sure to run at the biggest people on the field. I made sure to tackle the biggest person on the team because I needed to know I could do it before I went into a real test match to have to do it.
“Fortunately, everything went very well, but it was quite disheartening. It was really disheartening at first.”
After missing five matches, including four Wallaroos trial matches, Duck wasn’t certain she’d be able to travel to England, which made her second World Cup call-up even sweeter. Especially when the 32 squad members were told the news of their selection.
“Honestly, I was euphoric,” Duck said when asked about her selection. “I think I verbally screamed when I found out I was going to the World Cup.
“After the injuries and everything I’ve been through, it was one of those surreal moments. Having the opportunity to attend my second World Cup in itself is absolutely incredible, and after the injuries I’ve had in the last two and a half years, that’s a very special feeling.
“As you progress in your rugby career, there are certain things that I actually realize now that I don’t remember. I remember my last World Cup, I have very special moments, but I don’t really remember that phone call from my last World Cup and I will never forget having that moment in a room with 32 other women crying hysterically and just having that moment together. That moment was really special.”
Duck is now preparing to play in the Wallaroos’ first test match against Samoa, with Australia’s World Cup expectations of reaching the quarter-finals depending on a big initial win before facing the United States in the second group stage match. A win against their Pac4 rivals would secure their place in the knockout stage.
