Carys Cox on the West London derby, her love of the outdoors and nursing

Welsh international Carys Cox previews the West London derby, discusses her love of the outdoors and why she trained to become a nurse. 

The PWR returns this weekend after a month-long break. Trailfinders Women welcome West London rivals Harlequins Women for a Friday Night Lights fixture at Trailfinders Sports Club.

International centre Carys Cox offered her thoughts ahead of the Round Nine match.

“I think it’s going to be super competitive,” Cox said.

“This match is going to have quite a big influence on the rest of the season. So there’s quite a lot of pressure going into it, but I think we’ve had a few really good performances in the league this season. So hopefully that comes through on Friday.

“I think we’ve got quite a few experienced individuals in the team right now, so quite a lot of them know how to deal with pressure and deal with really big games.

“I think everyone’s really excited and it being a Friday night game also gives it a bit more of a buzz with a different atmosphere. I’m hoping for a big crowd for sure.”

In the history of the league, Harlequins have won three out of four of their fixtures against Trailfinders Women. This weekend, Trailfinders will be looking to narrow that head-to-head deficit and climb the PWR league table.

“My previous experience of playing Quins have always been big games. They’re always competitive and super tight. Harlequins play a really exciting brand of rugby: really fast, and they’ve got some very talented players as well.

“I like fast ball so hopefully it will be a fast game, and there’s gonna be some really tight matches out there as well.”

The last time out for Trailfinders Women was against Loughborough Lightning at cinch Stadium at Franklin’s Gardens over a month ago. Cox discussed how the break has helped her and her teammates recover and rebuild towards Round Nine of the PWR.

“If I’m honest, the break was probably really needed. It was a massive year last year in terms of the Six Nations into the World Cup, and then sort of back-to-back games pre-Christmas in the PWR. So I think everyone was actually pretty excited for the break, and I think it’s probably done a few bodies some favours, just to rest, and have that mental break as well.

“With the support from the Club, everyone’s kept their training up, and I think we’re gonna be in a really good place going into Friday.”

Trailfinders Women Head Coach Barney Maddison is keen for his players to have ample opportunities to bond on and off the pitch. Cox is one of the social secretaries for Trailfinders Women and has been pivotal in organising socials for the wider team.

“We’ve organised the socials a bit differently this year, so we’ve got five social teams with social secs in each team. Each team has or is planning a social for the rest of the year.

“We’ve had three socials already: an intro social, a bingo lingo social, and then we had our Christmas social. We’ve got another one coming up in a few weeks. But yeah, it’s a really good occasion to get all the girls together and have that bonding time off the field.

“I think getting to know someone off the field is only going to help your game on the field in terms of understanding how people play, how people react to situations and someone’s mindset.

“The socials are definitely important and we get quite a good buy in, so it’s great.”

The Welsh international is not only a starting player for both her club and country, she is also a qualified nurse.

“I actually tried to avoid nursing my whole life because we’ve got so many nurses in my family: my mum’s a nurse, my auntie’s a nurse, and my cousin was an Operating Department Practitioner (ODP). My other cousin’s a nurse too, so I tried to avoid it for as long as I could.

“I did a sport and exercise science degree, and then halfway through that first degree, I kind of was like, oh, I think I’ve got a real passion for healthcare.

“I applied for my nursing degree, and then I did another undergraduate degree straight away. I loved it, absolutely loved it.

“I did about eight months of work post that in a high care neuro ward alongside playing here at Trailfinders.

“Nursing is definitely something that I’m going to go back to post-rugby. It’s definitely still a passion of mine and something that I want to succeed in, but it was really quite challenging to try and succeed in both rugby and nursing at the same time.”

Cox had previously travelled between the hospital in Cardiff and Trailfinders Sports Club regularly. She emphasised how well she had memorised the roads between the two locations.

“I was nursing in Cardiff and then playing at Trailfinders. The M4 was my best friend.

“It was a really challenging time, but I wouldn’t change it because it hopefully sets me up for life post rugby.

“For a lot of the girls, we have to consider what life is post-rugby because it’s not something that’s obviously gonna set you up for a long time at the moment. So girls at the moment are trying to find careers that are around rugby, but also doing something we’re passionate about alongside our passion for rugby.”

It’s clear from Cox’s social media feeds that a life in the outdoors is one that appeals to her. With plenty of national landscapes in her home country and across the UK, Cox gave her verdict on her favourite outdoors locations.

“I love Brecon in Wales. You’ve got the waterfalls there as well. I normally do that route a few times a year when I’m back in Wales. And the beaches there are gorgeous as well, so I’ll normally visit them post training days when I’m back there. It is completely different to London.

“I would definitely say that I prefer to be in the outdoors, but I do enjoy London at the moment, and it’s definitely somewhere that has given me a lot of opportunities when living here. But being back to mountains and beaches, post-rugby is where I’d like to be.”