the Soul of Women’s Rugby
Natural Light, Grit & Spirit

Nine hours in the car. A stormy November weekend. And still, I wouldn’t have missed this for anything. Ivybridge RFC Ladies were ready. A grassroots women’s rugby team, shaped by grit, love for the game, and the rare leadership of a coaching duo who truly get it. Georgie and Ben Gulliver, partners in life and rugby had stepped in when another club turned its back on its women’s side. What they built at Ivybridge is more than a team. It’s a community, a comeback story, a show of what’s possible when women are supported to play.

I knew Georgie from her playing days with Saracens and England. Now, on the touchline in Devon, she carried more than leadership, she was pregnant with twins, something she hadn’t even shared yet. That quiet resilience, that humility, is what makes this story powerful. This shoot for Rugby Journal fell on one of those magical mornings where the low sun paints everything gold. Ivybridge was bathed in light as the team took the pitch, cheered on by a crowd of family, friends, and future players watching from the sidelines. The atmosphere was thick with purpose and pride. What I look for in sport isn’t just action. It’s emotion. Connection. The story beneath the surface. This is where my camera lives. If you’re commissioning photography that honours the truth of women’s sport, raw, real and radiant, I bring that lived experience and natural eye. Images that do justice to the women in front of the lens.