“We want to play for England,” announces an eight-year-old Poppy Cleall on a video shared on her twin sister’s Instagram page last month. England players Poppy and Bryony Cleall have been playing rugby together since the age of six, but England’s 52-10 win over Scotland in the Women’s Six Nations opener – with tries scored by both sisters – was the first time the twins have played together for their country.
There are a number of twins who play professional rugby – England’s Tom and Ben Curry, or Jordan and Ryan Olowofela, or the South African Kriel twins – but the Clealls are the only female twins in the world who both play full-time professional rugby. Poppy has 45 caps for England, Bryony has three, and they both play in the Premier 15s at Saracens.
Taking to the pitch together, they were quick to show their twin connection, with Poppy setting Bryony up with a quick pass that let the prop bundle over the line for her second try in an England shirt. “When you play for England everything is choreographed,” Poppy says, explaining how the twins’ try came to be. “I just got into my position. Normally I look left and right and say something to a teammate, but with Bryony I just give her the look and she knows what I mean.”
Playing together for England is a dream that the 28-year-old twins have been building since childhood. They got close to achieving this in 2019, when they were both on the team sheet for the Women’s Six Nations fixture against Ireland. “Bryony got her first cap, but I came off before she went on, so we weren’t actually on the pitch together.”
The pair started by watching their older brother play. “He was in an after-school rugby club, and my mum could only come to pick us all up at once, so Bryony and I had to stay until four o’clock and watch Josh play rugby. Then one time the coach asked if we wanted to join in – we of course said yes.”
When the family moved to Bournemouth, Poppy and Bryony were keen to continue playing. “My parents emailed our local rugby club to say they had two children who wanted to play. The club said ‘great, bring them down’, but apparently changed their tune when they found out we were two girls. At first we were the only girls in the minis’ section, but the chairman had a daughter who also wanted to join, which helped.”
The small club, Ellingham and Ringwood RFC in the New Forest, has become a surprising hub for women’s rugby, counting four ex-players in this year’s Women’s Six Nations. As well as the Cleall twins, there’s newly-capped Wales player Donna Rose and Scotland’s Lisa Cockburn. “I think that must be a record to get four international players from one club! For the boys, they all go to elite schools and rugby academies, but from the same grassroots club – that’s not bad is it?”
The team was supported by the twins’ dad Peter, who was manager of the under-18s girls’ team. “My dad was very passionate. He and the chairman really wanted to push for equal opportunities for us, so they used to take us on tours all around the country.”
Although the Cleall family couldn’t be there to watch Poppy and Bryony play together in Doncaster, family and friends could watch the game on BBC iPlayer. It’s the first time that all Women’s Six Nations games have been broadcast on one platform, which is something Poppy is pleased to see. “The coverage this year is triple of what I’ve seen before. When I’m going through social media, I’m seeing so much more coverage of players and their stories.
“England’s final game will be on BBC Two, so the girls are looking forward to that,” says Poppy. “The production of the games is just great – so much better than in the past, it’s really positive.”
The increased coverage of women’s rugby and the improved production values of the broadcasts offer a glimpse at the investment to come – which Poppy gets to experience first-hand as one of the few professional women’s rugby players in the world. In January 2019, England became the first side to award full-time professional contracts to its women’s players, which included former prison officer Poppy.
“Before [the contracts], it was a lot of juggling work and rugby, trying to get time off,” she says. “Running out of holiday and not being able to play at the weekend, things like that. Now it’s so different – we get days off to rest.”
The other benefit of being part of a professional set-up is the additional time together to train. “We’re getting to meet up and work on little bits together constantly – you can see the difference. You might say a girl has potential, but then you give her a contract and you see their skill level go up, their fitness goes up, and what they produce on the field is better.”
The ability to play rugby full-time means Poppy is becoming one of the best rugby players in the world – a compliment she quickly brushes off. “My coach said to me at the start of this season: ‘Do you know the difference between an international player and a world class player?’ I said no, and he said that a world class player will take the people around them to a different level and make their teammates better. That’s what I want – I don’t want to be a standout player in England, I want the team to have 15 world-class players on the pitch.”
GUINNESS is proud to be the first Official Partner of the Women’s Six Nations, and is working closely with a number of its own partners to increase visibility for the Women’s Six Nations. The brewer has launched an initiative to “Never Settle” until sport is a place where everyone can belong, regardless of their gender, race or sexuality. This initiative is part of a long-term commitment from GUINNESS to continue to grow inclusivity and accessibility for everyone in sport
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