Premiership Women’s Rugby final: Gloucester-Hartpury v Saracens
Date: Sunday, 16 March Kick-off: 15:00 GMT Venue: StoneX Stadium
Coverage: Watch on the Red Button, BBC iPlayer and online; follow live text commentary on BBC Sport website and app.
When the final whistle rings out for Sunday’s Premiership Women’s Rugby final, win or lose, it will bring to a close a chapter in Gloucester-Hartpury’s recent history.
Head of rugby Sean Lynn is departing to take up the Wales women national role, having been a huge driving force in transforming the club into the dominant force in English women’s domestic rugby.
Five years ago they were a mid-table outfit. Now they are two-time PWR champions, chasing a record third straight title when they face Saracens on Sunday at the StoneX Stadium.
“Credit to Lynny, he’s just done absolute wonders for us here. He lets us be us, he says ‘licence to inspire’ and that’s just about how can you be yourselves and how can you express yourself on the pitch,” Gloucester-Hartpury co-captain Zoe Aldcroft said.
Lynn has been part of the Hartpury College and Gloucester Rugby set up for two decades.
As a teenager he played for Gloucester’s academy. He then coached the BUCs men’s side – leading them to three Super Rugby titles – before becoming head of women’s rugby in 2019. He and his family even live on the college grounds.
While the on-the-field success Gloucester-Hartpury have had speaks for itself in the past three seasons – only six losses in 55 league games – the family culture is what comes up time and again from players as what makes the club special.
“Lynny has just been absolutely phenomenal for us at Gloucester-Hartpury, how he brings us together and how he connects us as a team, whether that be on pitch or off pitch, is so personable,” Aldcroft – who was first taught by Lynn when she was 16 – said.
“I think it’s just massive and we do come into the rugby environment like ‘how can he get the best out of us?’ – that’s something that I think is so important – but also ‘how can we get the best out of Lynny?'”
Image source, Rex FeaturesImage caption,
Sean Lynn has been involved with the club for two decades
Gloucester-Hartpury’s last defeat was 10 games ago, back on 30 November – a bruising loss to West Country rivals Bristol Bears on their own turf.
It was Lynn’s wife Vicki who went about reinvigorating the team.
“After the game a few of the players were just saying to me ‘Lynny, we’re not us’,” Lynn said.
“On the Monday I posed the question to the players, ‘Well who are we?’ My wife takes so much pride in this as well – it’s just not Sean Lynn involved in this, it’s the Lynn family – and she said to me ‘I am putting on a Christmas dinner for these girls and I am putting on something special.’
“In the end we had 25 players come round, plus family.”
Gloucester-Hartpury chief executive James Forrester has known Lynn for more than 20 years, having first crossed paths during his playing days for the Cherry and Whites, before coaching alongside him.
“Lynny deserves massive credit for that culture, because that is him,” Forrester said.
“He is definitely a people person, he brings people together and that’s for sure been a big part of our success.”
‘Two clubs, one city’
Forrester and Lynn both believe the foundations for success were always there at Gloucester-Hartpury, with the college boasting one of the most fruitful rugby academy pathways for men and women.
The turning point came in the summer of 2022, when funding for the team more than tripled after a review led by Forrester.
A number high-profile internationals were brought in, facilities merged with the men’s outfit, and narrow losses the previous season turned into a first title-win the next.
“We just felt with a relatively small investment we could be the best team in the country, because if we could just recruit a few of those high-end players to compliment the pathway and what we already had, Lynny and I were very confident we were going to win trophies,” Forrester said.
Today, the club shares training facilities with the men’s side, Kingsholm has been rebranded Queensholm and record attendances in the thousands have been broken repeatedly for matches.
“Two years ago we said ‘two clubs, one city’ – you can definitely see that,” Lynn said.
“For us to be able to go in and work with the men, myself just having conversations with George Skivington [Gloucester director of rugby] helps massively, Lewis Ludlow [Gloucester captain], they’re in the same physio room, they’re in the same lounge area.”
Image source, Rex FeaturesImage caption,
Gloucester co-captain Zoe Aldcroft was first coached by Sean Lynn aged 16
Forrester is quick to point out that Lynn is not the only Gloucester-Hartpury stalwart who has grown the club to where it is today.
“Having gone on that journey with the group, and it’s not just Lynny, it’s all the other staff, it’s your Mo Hunts, your Zoe Aldcrofts, Kathryn Buggy,” Forrester said.
“Also girls that don’t have the profile of those who have been there forever, your Rachel Lund, Ellie Rugman, Bianca Blackburn, Tatyana Heard, Hannah Jones.
“They have been on that whole journey for us and that for me is why it’s so special.”
Aldcroft agreed that this week of training before the final are “the sorts of weeks you live for”.
“Those moments will be super special this week and I’m just looking forward to being into it with the team and Lynny,” she said.
Lynn said lifting the PWR trophy for the first time in 2023 in front of almost 10,000 fans at Queensholm stands out as one of his highlights, as does his final home game 10 days ago in the semi-final win against Bristol.
A third title this weekend would be the fairytale ending, but even without that Lynn’s tenure has already left its mark.
“I think the brand of rugby, the players, the crowd, Gloucester is a rugby city and that’s not just for men anymore. It’s the men and women,” Lynn said.
