Category: Ambassadors

Gary Street is the most successful England rugby coach of all time.

As head coach of the England Women’s team from 2007, Gary led them to a glorious World Cup victory on France in 2014. A 21-9 win in the final against Canada saw England crowned as the best team in the world.

With him in charge, England also won five Six Nations titles on the bounce, four Nations Cups and four European Cups.

That success earned Gary numerous awards and a nomination for BBC Sport Personality of the Year while his side were winning the Team of the Year at the same high-profile event.

Since leaving his post with the national team, he helped coach Aylesford Bulls to a league and cup double in 2016/17 and that side is now playing under the Harlequins banner in the inaugural Tyrrells Women’s Premier XVs.

As part of an extended role with Quins, Gary is Academy Coach Development officer for the club working with coaches in the Developing Player Programme.

With the development of young players having always been close to his heart, Gary says he is delighted to be associated with a business that has been launched to do just that.

“I am really proud to have become an ambassador for didi rugby,” he said. “It is fun and entertaining and a great way to get kids active in the sport.

“Everyone should have didi rugby in their lives!”

Louis Deacon is quite simply a legend at Leicester Tigers.

Born and bred in the county, the lock forward was an almost ever-present at Welford Road for a decade and a half.

During that time, he made 274 appearances for the club and earned England recognition to win 29 caps. His debut came in 2005 against Samoa and he was involved in the France World Cup during 2007, where England reached the final.

He joined the Leicester Tigers Academy in 1997 and worked his way through the ranks to make is first team debut in 2000.

A strong and uncompromising second row, Deacon was known for doing the hard yards at rucks and mauls and was tremendously reliable for club and country.

During a hugely successful career, he played in two European Cup finals and five Premiership finals for his club before being forced to retire through injury in 2015.

Family has always been a big part of his life with brother Brett a team mate at Leicester during his playing days.

Rugby has always remained a big part of his life with coaching stints at Moseley, Coventry and with the Spanish national side.

He became an ambassador with didi because of his wish to spread the values of the sport to young children as early as possible in their development process.

“What Vicky and her team are doing with the didi rugby programme is great,” said Deacon.

“The values that they help instill in young people like discipline and respect at such a young age is brilliant.

“Having that as a foundation, while also having fun with friends, and the obvious health benefits for active youngsters is also pivotal.

“Getting them involved in such a fun programme at such an early age gives children the perfect start to an active life in sport.”

Sarah Hunter MBE has won over 100 caps for her country and enjoyed a long and glittering career in the game that is far from finished.

Now playing for Loughborough Lightning in the Tyrrell’s Premier League, the No.8 previously played for Bristol and Lichfield.

She began playing the game as a nine-year-old at primary school where she started off playing Rugby League as a Wigan supporter. She moved into the Union code as a teenager and never looked back.

Sarah quickly became a permanent fixture in the England squad and played a full role in the 2010 World Cup. With a host of medals at club and representative level, Sarah was a key member of the England team that won the 2014 World Cup in France with victory over Canada. She has numerous Six Nations medals and Grand Slams under her belt.

She was awarded an MBE for Services to Rugby and became the World Rugby Women’s Player of the Year in 2016. Her playing and leadership skills are still widely respected throughout the game.

George Chuter still stands second on the list for Aviva Premiership appearances with a staggering 262 under his belt during a career in top flight rugby which spanned 15 years with Saracens and Leicester Tigers.

When he retired in 2014, Chuter had played in seven Premiership finals for Leicester and was part of a squad that reached four European finals too.

His career began with Saracens in 1996 but he took a year out to travel the world in 2000 before joining Tigers under Dean Richards. He remained there for the rest of his career.

He earned international recognition too and won the first of his 24 caps during England’s summer tour of Australia. He was also part of the England squad that reached the World Cup final in France in 2007.

Alecs Donovan fought back from two years out with a serious injury to earn her Wales debut off the bench in the Six Nations against Italy at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff.

Having spent so long on the sidelines after rupturing an Achilles Tendon, the former hockey and netball player, who began sporting competition as a toddler, would have enjoyed her first run-out in national colours more than most.

“It’s a dream come true,” said Alecs. “I could not have wished for a better first cap. It’s surreal.

“It’s important that Women’s rugby teams play in stadiums like this and it’s important to get that recognition.”

A Swansea Rugby Club team mate of fellow didi rugby ambassador Siwan Lillicrap and didi rugby Swansea owner Robyn Lock, Alecs certainly did not waste her time while she was away from rugby.

She found that yoga was a great help during her rehab and is now giving everyone else the opportunity to enjoy that too having set up a business called Yogability.

“Rupturing my Achilles, meant that the one thing I could do was yoga. At first I couldn’t understand how on earth people, three times my age, were better than me, more flexible, stronger and healthier than I was,” said Alecs.

“After just two years of yoga, I can now understand the importance and the benefits it brings. All athletes, especially those rehabilitating from injury would benefit from yoga and others who are interested in general fitness and their well-being would gain so much from the teachings and benefits of yoga.

Wales, Swansea and Ospreys Women forward Siwan Lillicrap became the first female to ever be invited to take a seat on the board of Swansea Rugby Club.

Her positivity is something that strikes a chord with chairman Stephen Hughes.

“Siwan is doing a brilliant job,” he said. “She is very good in the boardroom and brilliant on the pitch and she leads her team tremendously well.”

Team-mate Alecs Donovan is also full of praise: “She is a great role model and an outstanding player who earns the respect of everyone on and off the field.”

Swansea Rugby Club is not the only place where Siwan is well respected.

Since making her international debut against Ireland in 2016, she has been an integral figure in the Wales national squad in a competitive second row area.

And her role as head of rugby at Swansea University means her experience is being put to good use developing those involved in the rugby programme.

“There is a wide variety of roles I do and I enjoy being pitch-side,” she said. “Girls have taken rugby up while studying here that have never played the game before.”

As an ambassador for didi rugby, Siwan will be helping Swansea and Ospreys team mate, Robyn Lock, the owner of didi rugby Swansea.

And, from her own experience, she knows the importance of getting youngsters playing the game and having fun.

“I used to be out in my wellies every Sunday morning watching my brother play and my father coach and I was always on the side of the pitch,” said Siwan. “I always loved the game and had a rugby ball in my hand whenever I could.”

​Heather Fisher is a hugely recognisable figure on the Women’s rugby circuit and an inspiration to those around her.

Having began her time in the public eye on the Great Britain bobsleigh squad, taking part in the British Championships and European circuit, she moved into rugby and became one of the game’s hardest workers and toughest tacklers.

She won her first international cap for England against the USA in 2009 and that was the start of a wonderful career that has propelled her onto the world stage.

She is now a World Cup winner at 15-a-side after success in France in 2014 and has represented her country at the 2009, 2013 and 2018 World Cup of Sevens.

She was also a member of the Great Britain squad that came so close to a medal at the 2016 Olympics Games in Rio.

Heather has worked on behalf of the Youth Sport Trust as a Sky Sports Athlete Mentor and will now be helping to mentor some much younger athletes as a didi rugby ambassador!

“I am really pleased to become an ambassador for didi rugby,” said Heather. “It is a fantastic organisation that will generate confidence and skills for little kids.

“It’s absolutely brilliant to be a part of it so thanks for having me on board. I am looking forward to working with everyone involved.”

Emily Scarratt has been a regular in the England side for a decade.

She first started playing rugby at the age of just five and it was the start of a beautiful relationship with a sport which has helped her travel the world playing Sevens and XVs for her country and winning numerous honours along the way.

Her most memorable day was the World Cup final in France in 2014 when she scored 16 points in England’s 21-9 win over Canada. It was a tournament she ended as top scorer with 70 points.

She has also won Six Nations grand slams, World Sevens Series tournaments and was England Women’s Rugby Player of the Year in 2013.

Emily was also the captain of Team GB in the Rugby Sevens at the Olympics in Rio in 2016 as the team finished just outside the medals in fourth.

She gave up her job as a PE teacher in Birmingham to become a full-time rugby player when professional central contracts were introduced and, having also taken up the game at such a young age, she knows all about the benefits of the sport to children.

“I just love the different elements of rugby,” she said.

“I played a lot of sport growing up but rugby has a bit of everything – you can kick, pass, run, tackle, there is an amalgamation of a lot of different areas of sport in one sport.”

It was a visit to a didi rugby class in Swansea that made Wales rugby legend Gareth Thomas aware of the benefits the service was providing to young children in the area.

Working for BBC Wales Sport, he visited didi Swansea owner Robyn Lock to recognise the Ospreys player for her services to the sport of rugby in the country.

And after seeing what fun didi rugby brought to kids and parents alike, Gareth was excited by what he saw and was happy to bring all of his experience and enthusiasm to the set-up.

didi rugby is delighted to have him on board and honoured that someone with such a rich history in the sport is now an ambassador of our values and desire to spread the sport to the youngsters of Wales.

With 100 Test caps under his belt, Gareth was the most-capped Wales rugby union player until he was overtaken by Stephen Jones in 2011. He is also the second-highest Wales try-scorer behind Shane Williams.

He was recognised at the highest level of the sport when he skippered the British & Irish Lions for the second and third Tests of their New Zealand tour in 2005.

He was an extremely popular member of the Wales national team and played his club rugby for the likes of Bridgend, Cardiff and Toulouse.

Nicknames Alfie, he moved into broadcasting and the media after retiring from playing and was an analyst on the 2011 and 2015 World Cups.

He has also appeared on mainstream TV shows like Dancing on Ice and Celebrity Big Brother.

For someone known for her commitment to fitness and healthy lifestyles, Rosemary Conley’s link to didi rugby was the perfect match.

The Leicester-born businesswoman, author and broadcaster was the founder of Rosemary Conley Diet and Fitness Club and has released countless programmes, books and DVDs to help people stay on top of their weight and remain focused on exercise and eating the right foods.

Her name has become synonymous with low-fat diets but the aerobic work-outs she also promotes provide an at-home regime for people who wanted an alternative to going to the gym.

When didi rugby founder Vicky Macqueen received her British Empire Medal in 2015, Rosemary was there to read her citation and the two ladies got talking about the business.

Soon afterwards, Rosemary became a didi rugby ambassador because the values of the business are exactly what she stands for.

“Vicky is a wonderful lady and I was thrilled to hear about didi rugby when we met,” she said.

“When she asked if I would become an ambassador, of course I said ‘yes’.

“Any initiative that is there to get young people running around, chasing a ball and getting fit and active, is a good one.

“In my line of line, it has always been about finding a type of physical activity that you will enjoy and didi rugby is brilliant for that.

“You will have tremendous fun and laughter by participating in didi rugby and I wish everyone involved in it, all the very best.”