Full-back Chloe Rollie insists Scotland’s women have ‘come back stronger’ after uncertainty over contracts threatened to derail their World Cup preparations.
Rollie, who was one of the first players to obtain a professional contract with Scottish Rugby in 2017, said a failure to conclude negotiations ahead of such a momentous occasion was not the ‘best timing’, and admitted it was ‘tough’ on some of her fellow team-mates.
Several players are still waiting to hear whether their deals will be renewed post World Cup — an issue which captain Rachel Malcolm previously called ‘unfair’ and ‘disruptive’.
‘It’s not the best situation to be in,’ admitted Rollie. ‘It’s not the best timing, either. But as a squad, no matter what situation they’re in, as individuals, we’ve managed to really pull together.
‘We’ve always brushed off the negatives or the background noise. And we’ve just come together even stronger, to work as a squad and to get the results that we want as a team.
‘We know what our staff deserve and we know what Bryan (Easson) deserves on his last competition.’
Rollie insists the Scotland squad will have no trouble putting the contract furore to one side
Rollie scores a try against Ireland during the 2023 Six Nations and remains a key threat
Rollie and Wales’ Kayleigh Powell gets to grips during the 2021 World Cup in New Zealand
Easson will leave his role as Scotland head coach at the end of the tournament, a move which Rollie insists was a blow.
‘Personally, I’m absolutely gutted about it,’ said the 30-year-old.
‘I think it’s just a shame, how it’s worked out. As a group, we all love his work, love what he’s done for us, love how much he’s pushed us on. How much he’s changed us as a squad. How professional he’s made us. How he’s lifted our standards.
‘I think for him personally, it’s the right thing that he needs to do. I think it’s his time to move on. But it’s just quite upsetting and disappointing the way that it has come about, with what’s been going on in the background. And how we’ve also lost our attack coach as well.’
Easson’s departure was announced in July — just weeks ahead of the World Cup. Malcolm called the revelation a ‘shock’ and admitted it had been ‘upsetting’ so close to such a vital competition.
Rollie agreed that it had been ‘completely wrong’, but insisted the decision had been taken out of Easson’s hands.
Asked whether she believed the decision to go was entirely of his own volition, the Jedburgh-born player said: ‘I think not one hundred per cent, no. But it’s just the way that the cycle of rugby is just now. It’s the changes that are happening. They all have a knock-on effect. And that’s just what’s happened in this situation.
‘I think the timing of it is completely wrong. But also with that being out of his hands, we don’t hold that against him. It’s the way it’s worked out.’
Rollie, who will play for Toulon Provence Mediterranee next season, says she’s now ‘excited’ to get going ahead of Scotland’s opening match against Wales next Saturday — and to re-write the wrongs of the previous World Cup in 2021.
‘It’s a massive opportunity,’ she added. ‘From the last World Cup, we kind of just felt like we turned up and were just a number. We just went through the motions.
‘Now we want to go there and actually perform. We want to put our stamp on the world stage and put in performances that get us wins, not just performances we’re happy with. More of getting over that finish line and getting the wins that we deserve.’
