Erin King is enjoying the rewards after a stellar year in action with Ireland which recently saw her crowned the Women’s 15s Breakthrough Player of the Year at the World Rugby Awards.
She made history in doing so, as she became the first-ever female Irish player to collect an individual award at the annual ceremony.
Here is the lowdown on King’s rip-roaring rugby journey to date:
Ireland’s Erin King poses with her World Rugby Women’s 15s Breakthrough Player award at the 2024 World Rugby Awards ceremony in Monaco. Pic: FREDERIC DIDES/AFP via Getty Images
Where is Erin King from?
Erin King was born in Sydney, Australia to Irish parents James and Joanne, who originally hailed from Blessington, Co. Wicklow.
The family moved around and also lived in Dubai and Doha before eventually returning to their roots in the Garden County when Erin was a teenager.
‘My cousins and grandparents were all in Ireland but it was definitely a big cultural change, how people act, it was all different,’ she said in an interview with The42. ‘It took about a year to settle in and rugby really helped.’
Erin King with parents Joanne and James. Pic: Instagram
Sporting background
While King is now making her mark on the rugby pitch, she did play for the Wicklow minor ladies’ team in the LFGA as a teenager.
She went on to play youth rugby with Naas RFC before going on to represent both Leinster and Ireland at U18 level. She currently plays her club rugby with Old Belvedere RFC.
Ireland Sevens
Having been identified as a Player of National Interest at the age of 17, King joined the Ireland Sevens programme in January 2021 and went on to make her debut in the code at the Dubai Sevens in December of the same year.
She notched her first tries for Ireland at the World Rugby Sevens Series in Toulouse in May 2022 before earning her place in the squad for the Sevens World Cup, held in September of that year.
King bookended a productive jaunt with the Sevens by representing her country at last summer’s Paris Olympics.
Ireland 15s
King picked up from where she left off with the Sevens squad and made a splash with the 15s as she debuted for Scott Bemand’s side during the Women’s XV1 tournament in the autumn.
She made her bow as a replacement against Australia before also coming off the bench to great effect against New Zealand, with her two late tries inspiring Ireland to a memorable victory.
She was then named Player of the Match after another eye-catching performance in the 26-14 win against the USA.
That all tallied with the judging panel at this year’s World Rugby awards, as King beat off competition from England’s Maddie Feaunati, Caitlyn Halse of Australia and New Zealand’s Hannah King to scoop the Women’s 15s Breakthrough Player of the Year gong.
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Author : rugby-247
Publish date : 2024-11-28 07:36:31
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