Law: “I think it’s everyone’s dream to just focus on rugby”

13 Sep 2017

Scotland Women scrum-half and recent Applied Mathematics graduate Sarah Law said she was realising "everyone's dream" after she was today confirmed as the fourth Scottish female rugby player to become a full-time professional.

The 22-year-old follows in the footsteps of fellow internationalists and academy players Jade Konkel, Chloe Rollie and Lisa Thomson, who recently joined French side LMRCV as part of a performance partnership between the academy and the French Top 8 runners-up.

Now a stage three player in the BT Sport Academy, Law will ply her trade for Murrayfield Wanderers and the University of Edinburgh, where she will study part-time towards a Masters in Operational Research and Data Science.

Full BT Sport Academy roster announced today

Speaking after the announcement, she said: “I’m obviously really excited about the opportunity of becoming a stage three BT Sport Academy player.

“I think it’s everyone’s dream to just focus on rugby and not have to worry about working and juggling your time alongside your commitment to the sport.”

Law caught the rugby bug aged six when her referee dad, Andy – who was then playing for Penicuik – took her to the club’s mini section.

She began playing for Murrayfield Wanderers’ senior team in 2012, aged 17, and helped them win the league and cup double that season.

Her journey through the Scotland U20 and Scotland 7s ranks quickly followed, before making her senior Scotland debut off the bench in Esher against England in the 2013 Women’s Six Nations, scoring her first points – a conversion – against Sweden in the eleven-try FIRA victory in Madrid later that year.

Undoubtedly among the highlights of her career came when she held her nerve to seal Scotland Women’s 15-14 win against Wales in this year’s Six Nations, as she successfully kicked a penalty in the dying minutes to win the match at Broadwood Stadium, playing a vital role in the national team’s best championship finish since 2010.

The young scrum-half hopes that the opportunity to dedicate herself to the game will bring more memorable moments for her and her compatriots in the navy blue of Scotland.

“To be given this opportunity is huge and means I can spend more time on my rugby. Hopefully I can improve as much as I want to this year and take that on to the pitch,” added Law.

“The time allows more opportunity to focus on skills and fitness but also recovery and rehabilitation, which are so important to helping you perform at a higher level.

“I think we [Scotland Women] have improved massively over the last two seasons. I think the players are quite excited about the improvements we’ve made over a relatively short space of time and where we’re able to go as a group.

“We’re all really excited about the future and working really hard to get more good results on the pitch.”