Carmela Morrall has put pen to paper on a new Loughborough Lightning contract, committing the age grade England international to remain with the club.

The talented centre, while youthful in terms of age, is already an experienced Premiership Women’s Rugby campaigner. The 21 year old is now in her fourth season with the African Violets, having made her debut as a replacement against Harlequins back in November 2022.

Morrall has started every game in the 2025/26 PWR season to date in the number 12 shirt, surpassing 50 appearances earlier in the year as she led the team out against Saracens at the StoneX in Round Six.

She produced two sublime assists in the recent clash with Sale Sharks and was at the heartbeat of last Friday’s win over Harlequins, including scoring the late match sealing try with a powerful finish.

“I’ve been at the club since I was 17,” Morrall said. “It’s become home to me, especially this season. The group is incredibly tight. I’m really excited to keep kicking on and stay here, and hopefully really push on next season and keep doing better in the league.

“As a group, we desperately want to succeed and prove ourselves. A goal for us would be to win the league, and I think that’s something that’s really exciting for us in the next few years coming."

“But that will only happen depending on how hard we can push as a group, keep working to get better, keep developing, and it’s an awesome challenge for us to go toe to toe with the teams at the top of the table.”

This season, Morrall has dominated in the centre alongside veteran USA international Alev Kelter, with the pair starting every single PWR game together.

“It’s been really cool, the way we play is very different,” Morrall added. “There are elements of her game, like her carry dominance and physicality, that I really admire."

“It’s something that I’ve always wanted to push my game towards — to get better in that area. So learning from her and learning how she runs her lines and the aggression she runs with is awesome to learn from.”

2023/24 was Morrall’s breakthrough season as she made 18 appearances in the centres, scoring a maiden try against Saracens before crossing the line three more times that campaign. Her efforts were acknowledged when she was named Lightning Young Player of the Season.

She is also another talent from the Loughborough University pathway, featuring in two BUCS finals and being named Women’s BUCS Super Rugby Player of the Season in 2024/25.

“Being at a place like Loughborough is unbelievable for your development as a young player,” she explained.

“Last season, for example, I didn’t get the game time I probably wanted in the PWR, but I had the opportunity to still play really high level rugby for the BUCS team."

“Being here is one of the best places to come as a young player, because you get the development and training of the PWR team and push yourself against seasoned internationals, but you can also have that playing outlet if you don’t get selected, so your development goes through the roof."

“Two people who have been really big for my development have been Helen Nelson and Emily Scarratt.

“To learn from two of the best to do it for their countries is unbelievable, and you probably don’t get that in a lot of places. So I can’t thank them enough for pushing me to be better.”

Alongside her 57 Lightning appearances, Morrall has also appeared seven times for England U21 and was part of the most recent camp that met last month in preparation for the U21 Six Nations, which take place in April and May.

Lightning head coach Nathan Smith is building a strong spine of his squad ahead of the 2026/27 season, with the likes of Helena Rowland, Daisy Hibbert Jones, Keevy Fitzpatrick, Mae Sagapolu and Meg Davey all agreeing new deals.

“I am delighted that we have retained Carmela and I am excited to see how she continues to develop moving forward as a Lightning player,” said Smith. “I think we have seen her game move on to the next level this season, and that comes with minutes on the pitch which she has been getting plenty of.

“Alongside her rugby playing ability, Cam has also developed as a leader and she has captained the side on occasions this season. It’s easy to forget, because she has been around the place for so long, that she is only 21 years of age. She is great for the environment and a fine example of the unique pathway we have here at Loughborough."

“I truly feel that with Cam, the sky is the limit. I have worked with her since day one of my time with Lightning and that first Cup block she played in has been so influential on her career."

"Out of the team that won away at Harlequins early into the 2023/24 season, we have seen three players in Lilli Ives Campion, Becky Boyd and Bo Westcombe Evans go on to become senior international players. I fully expect Cam to be the fourth.”

Photo credit: Dennis Dixon.