Getting ‘fitter, faster and stronger’ for biggest World Cup ever for women

Woman of Steel Jodie Cunningham is ready to prove her mettle on the World Cup stage, but she still has another year to wait.

England’s women should have played their first fixture of the 2021 Rugby League World Cup at Headingley on Tuesday.

Instead of kitting up against Brazil, however, Cunningham will be in workwear at her day job as the World Cup’s Community Engagement Lead.

Female rugby league players in England had already missed out on a domestic season in 2020 and then saw the goalposts shifted for their attempt at world domination when the World Cup was postponed in August, after Australia and New Zealand pulled out over Covid concerns.  

“Initially, obviously, it was a bit disappointing, but it was understandable obviously with all the complications that Covid has added to the mix,” Cunningham admitted. 

“We worked so hard for this, particularly through last year when we didn’t have a domestic season, as an England squad we really rallied together and we trained so hard. 

“Again, this year in preseason we had so much time together as England, really pressing for the World Cup because it was going to be the biggest World Cup there has ever been for women’s rugby league, and we were all so excited to take part and show what we can do. 

“A lot of progress has been made in the last 12 to 24 months and I just think another 12 months now is going to give us so much opportunity to get even fitter, faster, stronger, more time together to really hone those combinations between players and make sure our skills are on point for next year. 

“We definitely now all see it as a positive and just trying to utilise all the extra time we now have ahead of the World Cup.” 

With standalone women’s cricket and rugby union World Cups postponed to 2022 when many claimed the men’s may not have been, rugby league took a different path. 

She said: “The Rugby League World Cup as a whole is so inclusive, it’s a first for rugby league, it is a first for a lot of sports for how inclusive this tournament is, that’s been replicated in the way that all the tournaments have been treated the same way. 

“It’s a good sign that they’re making sure they are all kept together. Already, we have seen how much profile and visibility is provided for the women’s game being run alongside the men’s tournament, alongside the wheelchair tournament. 

“There are equal participation fees with the men, prize money for the first time. I took part in two previous World Cups and we didn’t have any participation fees, so all of that is really exciting. 

“The postponement means you have to wait a little while longer to be part of it, but I think everything being together is a massive bonus.” 

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Cunningham, who is a member of the Women’s Sport Trust’s Unlocked programme, will have to wait a year to see if she can add the World Cup trophy to her quartet of domestic triumphs from this year. 

As captain of St Helens, she led her side to the Challenge Cup, Super League and League Leaders title, alongside picking up the Woman of Steel award for Women’s Super League player of the year. 

“I think if you put down what a dream season could be at the start of the year our season has come pretty close, I’m not sure as a team at St Helens we could have done any more,” Cunningham added. 

“We were unbeaten in the whole season, we lifted all the trophies that were available to us and then obviously lifting Woman of Steel was a really special moment. 

“I play a team sport and it isn’t about the individual accolades, but I’m somebody who just wants to be consistent and lead from the front, especially at St Helens. 

“We knew that we had so much quality in the team but even I was shocked by some of the performances and some of the skills that were put on show by my team this year.  

“It was just incredible, the whole squad, not just the girls making the squad on game day, were all fantastic throughout the year. It was an actual dream, the only icing on the cake would have been to finish it with a World Cup.”