Scarborough RUFC cheer on their very own World Cup finalist Zoe Aldcroft

The first members will arrive by about 6am, and within half an hour the clubhouse is expected to be packed to the rafters with young girls and their mums, dads and grandparents, all there for one purpose, to cheer on one of their own in a World Cup final, writes Nick Westby.

More than a decade and a half has passed since Zoe Aldcroft first played rugby at Scarborough, the only girl at a boys session. The only girl at the club full stop. How times have changed.

On Saturday she walks out in front of nearly 40,000 at Eden Park in Auckland representing England in a World Cup final against hosts New Zealand. She does so not only with the well-wishes of an entire nation, but also the members of that proud club where it all began for her, a club compelled to act when that young girl had to look elsewhere to continue her rugby journey.

“Zoe having to leave to continue her own rugby journey prompted us to set up our own women’s section,” says Hazledine after Aldcroft moved 70 miles along the A64 to play for West Park Leeds.

“We felt bad that she had to go somewhere else to fulfil her dreams.

“So we put a lot of time and effort into setting up a women’s section.”

That was 10 years ago. Within a couple of years they had their first girls’ team and now they have 50 female rugby players registered to play across a senior women’s team and four age-group squads.

“Zoe has been incredibly supportive,” says Hazledine. “Whenever she is home she asks if she can come down to training. She’ll do a session with the girls who really look up to her. Zoe is so humble and we’re all incredibly proud of her.”

The feeling is mutual.

“It’s really pleasing for me to see that there’s such a big group of girls down at Scarborough now,” Aldcroft tells The Scarborough News from the England camp out in New Zealand.

“Young girls and older females together, it’s amazing to see.

“They’re just starting their rugby career in Scarborough, it can open so many doors for them.

"It’s really special for me to have inspired so many young girls.

“The girls at Scarborough sent me a video this morning, wishing me good luck, which meant so much.”

There is no bitterness from Aldcroft about having to leave her hometown to pursue her passion as a youngster, far from it.

That was how it was back then, barely any girls played rugby, so she had to go to West Park Leeds to continue her journey - “I just enjoyed it every time I went training, every time I played a game. I’m pretty stubborn, there was a persistence to keep going.”

It took her to Darlington Mowden Park and then on to Gloucester-Hartpury in the Premier XVs, the top tier of women’s club rugby.

It took her to a first England cap in 2016, a full-time contract with the national team in 2019 and then last December being named World Rugby’s women’s player of the year.

“It’s something I’ll reflect on more when I’ve finished my rugby career,” the 25-year-old second-row forward says of being named the best player on the planet.

Team accolades mean more and nothing beats winning a World Cup.

“I’m nervous, but very excited,” she says of Saturday’s final, the mask of the steely sports professional slipping only momentarily.

“I’m just trying to stay calm and focused and treat it like any other game.

“I have thought about it, the natural thing to do is to dream about winning the World Cup.

“Every time I do though my heart starts racing and I’ve got to check myself.”

She is a happy person off the pitch, full of life; on the pitch she has been described at this World Cup as a ‘demon’.

“I am very different off the field than I am on it,” she laughs. “On the field I have this switch where I’m right, let’s go for it.”

As big as the occasion is for her and for her country, the importance of Saturday’s final for the women’s sports movement is not lost on Aldcroft.

“It’s a massive moment and a really positive thing that it has become such a huge spectacle,” says Aldcroft, who along with her team-mates was inspired by the Lionesses’ triumph at the summer’s European Championships.

“Hopefully Eden Park will be sold out and with all the people watching around the world we can showcase how entertaining women’s rugby can be.

“It’s a special time to be a part of women’s sport. I could never have imagined it. Not even six years ago I would have thought this possible.

“It’s been an amazing journey and something that will hopefully inspire the next generation of girls to play rugby in Scarborough.”