Scarratt revels in holiday nostalgia ahead of celebrating milestone 100th cap

By Will Jennings

Centurion Emily Scarratt believes banishing the booze on a post A-Level holiday bash kickstarted her record-breaking rugby journey.

The England centre, 32, will bring up her 100th cap when the Red Roses take on Ireland in the TikTok Women’s Six Nations at Welford Road on Sunday.

Scarratt has racked up a record haul of 640 points since her debut against the USA in 2008 and is now one of the undisputed superstars of the booming women’s game.

The Loughborough Lightning ace received her first England call-up - from former boss Gary Street – aged 18 while on a girls’ holiday to Cyprus but has no regrets at ‘toning things down’ as she celebrates a ‘crazy’ career milestone.

She said: “You know that holiday you go on after your A-Levels with all your friends?

“The first one without your parents and you’re having a good time, basically.

“Gary Street, the coach at the time, called me and asked if I wanted to be part of the Nations Cup squad.

“So the rest of the holiday took a slightly different slant for me!

“Most of my friends still had a great time, but I had to tone it down a little bit!

“It was quite a good story.

“It’s a little bit crazy – every time the number has come up, the girls have been giving me the big one.

“But genuinely, I’ve tried not to think about it – I know how fragile this sport can be at times and how you shouldn’t take anything for granted.

“It’s definitely something I never set out to achieve, so it’s hard to get my head around.”

Scarratt starts in the midfield this weekend as Simon Middleton’s resurgent Red Roses aim to clinch their 22nd win on the spin.

England sit at the top of the TikTok Women’s Six Nations standings after breezing past Scotland, Italy and Wales, level on points with France ahead of a hotly-anticipated fifth round showdown next weekend.

Scarratt will bring up her landmark at her home ground and the Leicester-born star added: “It’s mad.

“If you were to write about it and make it the best it could possibly be, I think this would be the script.

“We used to have season tickets there when I was growing up – so I’ve got some really fond memories of the place.

“I don’t know who’s writing the script - but I definitely owe them a drink or two!”

The TikTok Women’s Six Nations is more accessible than ever before. To find out how you can watch the Women’s Championship visit: womens.sixnationsrugby.com/tv/