SAHER HAMDEN’s international skill and experience will be a big asset to Ennis RFC in their first-ever Energia All Ireland League (AIL) match.
Ohio native, Saher joins the senior women’s team as a new recruit from the United States and is excited to contribute to a squad making history.
Growing up in Cleveland Ohio, Saher was a self-described tomboy who played a variety of sports, including basketball and softball. Rugby first came into her life during high school when a new school encouraged her to try the sport during a spring season.
“I did one practice, I swear, and I could tell you some of the stuff we did, but it just brought together all the sports I played pretty much and added the physicality to it,” Saher told the Clare Echo.
For Saher, the physicality of rugby is one of its biggest draws. “When you do it right, and you just, you feel like you’ve made that good hit, you had good shoulder connection, good drive, you land on top of them or whatever, it just kind of lifts your soul, it gets you fired up”.
Saher has competed at a high level in the U.S., including with the Denver Onyx, where she played a key role in helping the team win a national championship, and she also trained with the USA team in 2021. Saher with the USA Women’s Eagles facing Ireland in a November 2021 test match at the RDS Arena in Dublin.
Saher joined Ennis RFC this season to compete in the teams AIL debut. She attended her first training session on Tuesday, September 16. She immediately felt welcomed into the squad. Despite being new to Irish rugby, she quickly bonded with her teammates and was impressed by their commitment and camaraderie. “I just came to play rugby with Ennis. I’ve heard about Ennis, and I’m excited to be here”.
Reflecting on the team’s spirit, she added, “I feel like people underestimate when a team has heart compared to some of these other teams, who I’m sure have been around for 20 plus years, but heart and working for each other will take you a long way, so I’m excited to do that season with them”.
Despite her extensive experience, she had never consistently played her preferred position of centre until joining Ennis RFC. At inside or outside centre, Saher describes herself as “a little shifty and a playmaker,” a role that allows her to use her speed and agility to create opportunities for her teammates.
With less than two weeks of training with her new team under her belt Saher is determined not to let nerves get the better of her and plans to remain focused on embracing this new challenge. “I don’t know what to expect, but I’m ready to jump in, learn with the team, and give it everything I’ve got”.
While she is excited about jumping into a new competitive season Saher is equally enthusiastic about being part of the growing women’s rugby scene in Ireland, noting how the sport now provides a platform and recognition for female athletes that was often lacking in previous years. “It is empowering, you know, as a woman to have that platform finally. And the girls also mentioned, they get president now at the club. They don’t get seconds, they don’t get thirds, they don’t get dismissed and pushed to the side, they get priority. And if people just prioritise women’s sports a little bit more, they would see it’s worth it”.
