Lilli Ives Campion and Daisy Hibbert-Jones will both achieve significant milestones when Loughborough Lightning take on Gloucester-Hartpury this weekend.
Second row Ives Campion, aged just 21, will run out at Kingsholm Stadium on Saturday (kick-off: 2pm) for her 50th Premiership Women’s Rugby game, and her 63rd outing overall in an African Violet shirt.
The Red Roses international made her Lightning debut in April 2021 against Saracens aged only 17 and only seven players have made more appearances in the history of Loughborough Lightning.
Number eight and co-captain Hibbert-Jones, aged 22, extends her remarkable sequence of not missing a league or cup match in 24 games as she makes her 50th competitive appearance for Lightning.
“We’re delighted to see Lilli and Daisy reach these big appearance milestones in a fixture as big as taking on the defending champions in their own back yard,” said head coach Nathan Smith.
“Both players are a credit to themselves and the club and are at the heart of what we’re trying to achieve here at Loughborough Lightning.”
Lightning enter the Round 13 match with the same 23 players that secured a first-ever victory over Saracens last time out at cinch Stadium at Franklin’s Gardens.
However Smith has made a first change to the starting line-up in four rounds as Courtney Holtkamp, who came off the bench in Sunday’s 22-17 win, makes the first start of her second spell at the club. Fellow Canadian Abby Duguid swaps places with Holtkamp to take her place amongst the replacements.
Alev Kelter made the most dominant carries (11), post-contact metres (49), and beat the most defenders (nine) in Round 12 and no player has made as many dominant carries in a match this season.
She continues her midfield partnership with Emily Scarratt, who became the first player to pass the 250-point mark for Lightning as her try and conversion moved her to 255 points scored in an African Violet shirt.
The front row trios of Anne Young, Kathryn Treder and Laura Keates and back row of Hallie Taufoou, Sadia Kabeya and Hibbert-Jones stay in situ, as the pack look to build on their league-high 22 line outs stolen this season.
Co-captain Rachel Malcolm, who made her return to action after ten weeks out injured last weekend, remains among the replacements. When she makes it onto the field, she will pull level with Carys Williams-Morris as the sixth-highest all-time Lightning appearance maker.
PWR’s most prolific longer passer (587) Meg Davey remains at scrum-half alongside fly-half Helen Nelson in the crucial half-back positions.
Winger Krissy Scurfield will seek to build on her incredible haul of six tries in two games – and nine tries in eight overall since joining Lightning – as part of the same back-three trio with Bulou Mataitoga and fullback Francesca Goldthorp.
“Defeating Saracens was a milestone moment for us and one we enjoyed together,” said Smith. “But the challenge steps up a notch again this weekend against Gloucester-Hartpury.
“There is a tremendous amount of confidence flowing through the group and we’re excited by the challenge ahead of us.”
