As Ireland prepare for the Rugby World Cup, one key player who will be critical to the country's success is Linda Jugang.
The Leinster player played a vital role in turning around Ireland's fortunes as the team missed out on the previous World Cup in 2022 following qualifier defeats to Spain and Scotland.
Things were no better initially and the 2023 Six Nations were in limbo until the appointment of Scott Bemand helped turn things around for Ireland.
For Jugang, her development as a defensive player began with a move to France, where she signed with French club ASM Romagnat in Clermont in 2021.
“In 2021, I moved to France after we failed in the World Cup qualifying round.
“I wanted to continue my studies, I wanted to challenge myself, obviously it was a difficult time for the team.
“For me personally, it was just about focusing and continuing to learn. There's no better place to be as a holding player than France, where the passion for the fight is incredible.
“I was very young and it was important for me to be in the place where the art of fighting was born and to learn it.”
It has been an unusual journey for the 28-year-old rugby player, who was unable to play in 2015 but has since become an international player.
When Jugang signed up to make new friends among her colleagues, she was not aware of the rules, but those who watched were inspired by her play.
I signed up for a tag rugby match to hang out with my co-workers. The match got cancelled and everyone else withdrew their names from the list.
“But the company’s elite team was playing in the finals, and they needed a girl, and I was the only one who didn’t remove my name from the list, because I didn’t know the rules.
“They said, 'Who's Linda? Do you want to be in this tag rugby final?' 'Yeah, why not?'”
“They asked, 'Do you know about rugby? Have you ever learned to play rugby?' 'No.'
“I spent the whole day at work Googling 'what is rugby?'
“I went to Wanderers, which was my first rugby club. I didn't know any of the rules. I was always offside. The referee said, 'If you're offside again, I'm going to show you a yellow card.'
“Then my friend passed me the ball and I ran towards the field. Everyone was screaming for me to score. I dropped the ball because I didn't know how to land it properly.
I was invited by the manager of the Wanderers club. After a game of tag rugby, she came up to me and asked if I wanted to try playing physical rugby. Real rugby. I asked her, “What is real rugby?”
“I ended up playing for Wanderers in the fourth tier. I was invited to a trial at Leinster. Then I went to Old Belvedere and Leinster and that's where my journey began.”
Fast forward to 2025 and with 48 matches played, Jugang could be playing its 50th World Cup match.
Since Beamand took over, Ireland have qualified for the World Cup by finishing third in the Six Nations and recording some significant wins over New Zealand and Australia.
Now that the team has shown its ability to compete with the best, Jugang believes Ireland will look different at the World Cup.
The fact that we did so well in Vancouver and finished second in the top division, the fact that we were able to perform against Australia, is inspiring.
“We definitely won't go into this World Cup as underdogs. Considering we are ranked fifth in the world, our goal is to continue to grow.”
We know what other teams think of us, but for us the most important thing is performances, victories and achievements. At the end of the World Cup we will be satisfied and will
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
