Rachel hails from a rugby-centric family; her father, Walter Malcolm, played district rugby, and her brothers, Donald and James, have represented Scotland at various levels. She began her sporting journey in hockey, representing Scotland at U17, U18, and U21 levels, before making the bold transition to rugby.

Demonstrating a strong academic inclination, Rachel pursued higher education alongside her athletic career. She earned a bachelor’s degree in sports and exercise science and a master’s degree in exercise physiology from Loughborough University. Her commitment to academic excellence led her to Nottingham Trent University, where she completed a PhD in environmental physiology.

Rachel’s rugby career started simply through playing touch rugby for fun, but quickly people began to see what she couldn’t yet – the makings of a rugby star. She later joined Lichfield Ladies to try her had at contract rugby, and she quickly made an impact. She joined Loughborough Lightning in 2017, captaining the team during the inaugural season of PWR.

Internationally, Rachel debuted for Scotland in 2016 during the Women’s Rugby World Cup Qualifier against Spain. She came onto the pitch as a replacement at the same time as Sarah Bonar, with the two earning their first caps together. Malcolm’s first start came in the 2017 Women’s Six Nations opener against Ireland at Broadwood Stadium. During this game, she sustained an injury that meant that she missed the rest of the campaign.

Rachel earned a handful of caps as a hooker before cementing her position as a flanker and is now Scotland Women’s most-capped at blindside flanker.

Malcolm captained Scotland on-field on the national side’s first ever summer tour, to South Africa in 2019. She was then named captain ahead of the 2020 Six Nations and has captained the time ever since, and she has been hailed as one of the ‘great Scotland captains’.

In December 2022, Rachel Malcolm was among 28 players awarded professional contracts by Scottish Rugby, marking a significant milestone for women’s rugby in Scotland.

In 2024, Rachel earned her 50th cap for Scotland in their WXV2 win against Italy.

She continues to play her club rugby with Loughborough and is currently their co-captain alongside Daisy Hibbert-Jones.#

Hear more about Rachel from her teammate Sarah Bonar, as part of Scottish Gas’s Meet My Teammate campaign: