Kate Zackary is proud of what her American team accomplished WXV 1 even though he did not win the tournament.

The Trailfinders Women forward earned her 40th cap in Vancouver as the Eagles succumbed to defeats against England, France and Ireland.

Entered the competition after a third place in the Pacific Series Four in May, Sione Fukofuka’s team left Vancouver without a point in October.

Draw for the groups for the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup | RPTV

Follow the group draw for the next Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 which will take place in England. Visit RugbyPass TV for complete coverage of women’s rugby.

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Draw for the groups for the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup | RPTV

Follow the group draw for the next Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 which will take place in England. Visit RugbyPass TV for complete coverage of women’s rugby.

More Women’s Rugby

Soundly beaten 61-21 by England after a good start at BC Place, Zackary and her teammates then lost 22-14 against France and 26-14 against Ireland.

“Immediately after the tournament, after the Ireland game, I felt really proud,” Zackary said.

“I didn’t even think about the fact that we went 0-3 and came away with zero points. I just thought we played some really good rugby.

“We came in wanting to execute a few things and really let our set piece shine against some really strong teams.

“Against France it was about being comfortable in a foot battle, and I think we did that. In every game we had a scorer and we met him.

“A few weeks later, I can’t help but think: ‘I wish we won a game.’ That would have been good.

“But it’s funny, I’m back in England now and people are saying it’s one of the best tournaments they’ve seen us play.

“We shut people down. We played against England with a 10 point gap until the last 10 minutes. In the first 10 minutes against France, we could have scored three tries.

“Ireland are on the rise, they beat New Zealand in the opening weekend and we were leading them. Without our mistakes, we would have beaten them.

For Zackary and his teammates, there’s already a sense of anticipation for when the Eagles will meet again.

Less than a year into Fukofuka’s tenure as head coach, the team has recruited new talent and is evaluating their team’s progress based on their performances and results.

Now nine matches into the Australian’s tenure, the Eagles have three wins, one draw and five defeats to their name.

With players plying their trade in Premiership Women’s Rugby, contracted to USA Sevens or about to embark on their first campaign as paid players competing in Women’s Elite Rugby (WER), it feels like the time is right to progress.

“We’re just starting to find the momentum,” Zackary said. “Last year we had very good interim coaches and Sione took over last December. Getting to where we are is huge.

“We played very good matches. He’s done his job to make sure he has many points of contact across the United States – he’s going to see a lot of teams, players and also recruit.

“The exciting thing is that over the next few months we will have players in England playing some good rugby and girls in the USA preparing for the WER season.

“Our sevens players play in a daily training environment.

“What we are trying to create is; If you are not in a daily training environment, you have a regular training schedule and markers that you must achieve.

“It’s really crazy to think that we’re still finding momentum.” Nothing is set in stone yet. »

Date set in Sunderland

Zackary hopes to mobilize local support ahead of 2025 U.S. Women’s Championships Rugby World Cup first match against England.

Drawn against the tournament host nation, the Eagles will kick off the 16-team tournament at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland, with the world watching.

But even thousands of miles from home, the 35-year-old and her teammates will have a certain familiarity.

One of several Eagles plying their trade in the PWR, Zackary is part of the coaching panel for the Brunel University women’s team, while other teammates have also integrated into their communities.

“We had 20 players in REP for three years and I think they have started to connect with the community,” she said.

“We’re in another country and there will be fans there for some of us, which is pretty cool.”

More than ever, there is a sense of anticipation for what the Eagles could achieve.

Over the summer, the world was delighted when the nation won bronze at the Paris Olympics, with Ilona Maher becoming the most followed rugby athlete on social networks.

Maher is understood to be currently debating a move to PWR, with Maher expected to be part of the Eagles’ Rugby World Cup plans seven years after his last XV cap, but the noise around the squad will only continue to intensify.

With the World Cup opener circled and highlighted in next year’s schedule, Zackary hopes to continue to capitalize on the momentum building around the team.

“England are one of the best teams,” Zackary said. “They are at home for the tournament and there is a lot of buzz around this match.

“It’s the first match. No matter who it was, it would be talked about for a year.

“I think it will be great. There will be a big buzz around the stadium, which will be great even for our team.

“In the United States we continue to build our brand, we come out of the tail of the sevens tournament with a very good Olympic campaign and we look forward to having a big World Cup.”

Happy trails

Until he returns to Team USA, Zackary’s focus will be solely on Trailfinders.

Five rounds into the new PWR season, the London club are sixth in the table and will face two-time champions Gloucester-Hartpury next time out.

Ending its first season in the competition on a high note, the club has high expectations this year.

Most recently recording a 36-17 victory over Leicester Tigers at Mattioli Woods Welford Road, the team is exceeding expectations following the sudden departure this summer of Giselle Mather as director of women’s rugby at Trailfinders Sports Ground.

While many expected the coach’s much-heralded departure to disrupt the team she built, Mather laid the groundwork for the installation of Barney Maddison as the team’s head coach .

“Change can always be difficult,” Zackary said. “That being said, Giselle has put together a great program.

“She recruited good people. Not only good rugby players, but I have built a very good culture, from the staff to the players.

“Even with his departure and Barney Maddison to become a head coach, even though we had this change.

“We always had good people and a good rugby culture. Even if you were wondering if this was a big change, on the other hand, we have all the tools and resources to be a good team.

“We finished on a high last year against Harlequins, and everyone wants to compete this season and be in the top four. We know we can do it.