By her own admission, the Six Nations was a rollercoaster for Chloe Rollie, but she’s hoping that is in the past as she looks ahead to beginning a new campaign against Wales on Friday night.
Rollie was benched for the first time in her international career for the corresponding fixture in Cardiff during the Six Nations, a match that ended with Scotland’s first win on Welsh soil for two decades.
She earned a recall for matches against England, France and Italy, but was then sent off for a dangerous clear-out in the dying embers in Parma.
Rollie then missed the crunch clash with Ireland that saw Scotland beaten and miss out on securing automatic qualification for the Rugby World Cup.
But this summer has been a reset for the 29-year-old, who had ankle surgery on a long-standing issue, and secured her club future by joining Ealing Trailfinders.
Rollie said: "My whole season last season, I describe it as a rollercoaster, there were moments that were really good and then there were moments that were pretty bad whether that was injury or selection or you know getting the red card in the 6Ns.
“The summer was like a reset for me, I got ankle surgery and that was the moment where I was like ‘cool, now I reset and refocus and look to get better as a player and put that all behind me’.
“This is a new season as a player and if you don’t reset or look for that fresh start then you will just build up baggage and it will drag you down.”
Rollie is looking forward to the challenge of moving to Ealing, with a crop of Scotland internationals also moving to the club this summer.
Lisa Thomson, Caity Mattinson and Sarah Denholm have all agreed moves to the Trailfinders, while Liz Musgrove is already with the Professional Women’s Rugby (PWR) club.
“I’m really excited to go down to Ealing,” Rollie said.
“When I spoke to the coach it sounded like the way that Ealing play would suit me very well.
“There’s a couple of Scottish people there to work with and have that connection, so when you come back to country you just fall back into it and you know how they work.
“I think it’s going to be a really good opportunity for me to be back in the mix and show in the PWR what I can do again.”
The coach who sold Rollie the vision was Giselle Mather – and the Scotland fullback admitted the news last week that she had stepped down did come as a shock, but insisted it will not change things when she does finally get to her new club.
Rollie added: "It was a shock for me because she was the one I spoke to and we had a really good plan on how I would fit into the squad and how welcomed I would be.
“That’s still going to be the case, it’s just she won’t be there. So it was a bit of a shock, but I’m sure it will be absolutely fine.”
Rollie spent two years in Lille from 2017 before joining Harlequins for another two-year spell. She had a single season with Exeter Chiefs and a year at Loughborough Lightning, but now wants to settle down at Ealing.
“I’ve always been the person who has wanted to stay at clubs. At Quins I fitted in really well and it was just things out of my control that happened, and it was just to value myself as a player I had to move on.
“There was no way I could stay at clubs where I didn’t feel I was getting as valued as I should have been.
“I don’t want to move clubs, but sometimes, especially in women’s sport, you have to make these sacrifices to get what you need as a player.
“This is a club where I do want to stay. I want to build a good rapport with the club and be able to perform, and almost make myself a leader in that squad and help younger ones come through.”
Rollie’s quest to put her ‘rollercoaster’ 2023/24 campaign behind her will start at Hive Stadium on Friday night against Wales.
She knows exactly what to expect from Ioan Cunningham’s side.
“Wales, as we say every year, they are physical, they are strong, they are pragmatic and think on their feet,” the 65-times capped fullback said.
“They maybe focus less on their set piece now and play a bit more so that means we have to be at the top end of our game, always switched on and always alert to everything.
“They are a big squad and they have some weight in that pack and they will run at you if you give them a chance so we just need to shut that down before it happens.”
And Rollie hopes Scotland get chances to show the work they have put in on their attacking game during pre-season.
She added: “We really have focused on attack and how we want to play and it is almost like a case of more freedom, but also being better at knowing when to pull the trigger or not.
“There are times in the game where opportunities are there to be taken and other times where they maybe aren’t there and you have to recycle or reset, and as a squad we are getting more clarity on that.
“We are understanding better as a team and as individuals how to approach those moments in a game, so I think in attack it is definitely getting better.”
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