Elliann Clarke Interview: Scotland are in an 'amazing' place - I feel a lot more confident going into WXV 2
Former University of Edinburgh player Elliann Clarke recently made her first start for Scotland
©Bryan Robertson Photography
Up-and-coming front-rower Elliann Clarke believes the Scotland women’s squad is “in an amazing place” as they touch down in South Africa ahead of the defence of their WXV 2 title.
The tighthead prop is buzzing to get back to Cape Town for matches versus Italy (September 28), Japan (October 5) and Australia (October 12) after good memories of this time last year when the Scots lifted silverware in the inaugural tournament.
She is also on a high because Scotland have won 10 of their last 13 Tests dating back to April 2023 and, this week, they reached an all-time high of fifth in the World Rugby rankings.
“The squad is in an amazing place, we have got so much depth and that can only put us in a good spot leading into WXV 2,” 23-year-old Clarke, the Bristol Bears player, told TRU.
“I feel we are in a really good place. We have built really well over the pre-season block and then in the two recent games against Wales (40-14) and against Fiji (59-15).
“We did well against Wales, but there were still things to work and we really took that into the Fiji week and trained well pre-Fiji.
“Our fitness levels have been shining through and that definitely shows when you are able to score points late on in games and the bench can make a big impact too.
“That is down to the hard work we are putting in and the hard work of the coaches and just the way in general we want to play rugby now.”
13 is lucky for some
The Fiji match last weekend at Hive Stadium in Edinburgh was Clarke’s 13th cap, but it was her first start.
She made her debut versus the USA in 2022, went to the Rugby World Cup later that year and has been around the group consistently ever since.
However, she has had to bide her time behind regular starting number three Christine Belisle.
“It was a huge moment for me in my career,” the former Stirling County player, who also previously played a lot of top-flight student rugby for the University of Edinburgh before moving to Bristol, admitted.
“I have been working towards this for a while. It is your goal when you come into the squad to push yourself and play as many minutes as possible and get starts so to get the starting shirt was amazing and it really meant so much to me.
“And, personally, I think I feel a lot more confident going into this year’s WXV 2 event than last year and that is down to the great environments I have here with Scotland and at Bristol.
“I really enjoyed my first season in the PWR [Bristol reached the PWR final] and it was amazing for me to play quite a lot of minutes as well as training with some really good players every day.
“The players down at Bristol test me every day and if you are being tested every day, then you are going to get better and it has given me a confidence boost.”
“To see Elliann’s growth has been incredible”
There is nothing like having the backing of your teammates to boost your confidence and it is clear fellow tighthead Belisle, 30 with 37 caps under her belt, enjoys working with Clarke.
“Elliann is so good,” Belisle said about Clarke. “To see her growth both on and off the pitch in the last couple of years has been incredible. She and I have a nice little pact together. She is super supportive of me and I of her and I love to see her succeeding and growing and when she moved to Bristol, that only helped her to go from strength to strength.
“In the PWR in England, you are packing down against internationals week after week. It is why I went down south originally too [Belisle plays for Loughborough Lightning] - and you learn with every game.
“Her growth with Bristol and in the international game has been huge and it is important for us to have that depth at tighthead - she has been class.”
“We have five quality props available to us as we head to South Africa”
As well as Belisle seeing Clarke’s potential, Scotland head coach Bryan Easson recognises it too and he was impressed by the way she and loosehead prop Anne Young, 24 with 12 caps, both handled their first international starts in the Fiji match.
“I thought Elliann and Anne were both great,” Easson said post-match.
“They have had to wait patiently for their opportunity to start, but when it came they were ready and they took it.
“With them now alongside fellow props Leah Bartlett, Christine Belisle and Lisa Cockburn, we have five quality props available to us as we head to WXV 2 in South Africa.”
“In general, I’m very proud of the recent run of results. Everybody has worked really hard and we’ve gone through some lows, but it just shows the resilience of the group and how hard everybody works that we are where we are and the players are putting that on the pitch.”
Scotland squad for WXV 2 (uncapped in bold)
Forwards
Leah Bartlett (Leicester Tigers), Christine Belisle (Loughborough Lightning), Sarah Bonar (Harlequins), Elliann Clarke (Bristol Bears), Lisa Cockburn (Gloucester Hartpury), Eva Donaldson (Leicester Tigers), Evie Gallagher (Bristol Bears), Jade Konkel (Harlequins), Rachel Malcolm (Loughborough Lightning), Elis Martin (Loughborough Lightning), Fiona McIntosh (Saracens), Rachel McLachlan (Montpellier), Louise McMillan (Saracens), Lana Skeldon (Bristol Bears), Aila Ronald (University of Edinburgh), Alex Stewart (Corstorphine Cougars), Anne Young (Loughborough Lightning)
Backs
Leia Brebner-Holden (Gloucester-Hartpury/Cheltenham Tigers), Coreen Grant (Saracens), Caity Mattinson (Ealing Trailfinders), Mairi McDonald (Exeter Chiefs), Francesca McGhie (Leicester Tigers), Rhona Lloyd (GB 7s/Stade Bordelais), Helen Nelson (Loughborough Lightning), Emma Orr (Bristol Bears), Rachel Philipps (Sale Sharks), Lisa Thomson (GB 7s/Ealing Trailfinders), Chloe Rollie (Ealing Trailfinders), Lucia Scott (Hartpury University/Gloucester Hartpury), Meryl Smith (Bristol Bears).
