Sarah Hunter's 16-year England career summed up in 48 hours

The 48 hours surrounding Sarah Hunter's retirement announcement perfectly encapsulated the 16 years of her England career. The 37-year-old only told her teammates the day before the announcement, the ever-humble Hunter not wanting to take attention away from the beginning of their TikTok Women's Six Nations campaign. Ad Once the announcement had been made, there was no let up as the back row was involved in the final double training session day of her athlete life, and she would not have done anything differently.

RugbyTikTok Women's Six Nations: Italy in Focus42 MINUTES AGO «I'm glad the announcement has been early in the week,» she said. «Now all the attention and focus can be purely on the team, ensuring we go out and perform and I go out and perform and there's no distraction from that. »I genuinely have been overwhelmed by the love, support, and kind messages.

«My phone has not stopped. I haven't had the time to take it all in and get back to people but over the next couple of days, I will make sure I do.» While most of the Red Roses squad found out on Monday, she did confide in three players, also expressing gratitude to head coach Simon Middleton for allowing her to retire one game into the defence of their Six Nations crown. Six Nations Rugby, the official organising body responsible for the TikTok Women’s Six Nations, broke all fan engagement records in 2022 and highlighted its commitment to giving the women’s game the best possible platform to grow.