A tribute to the USA’s number one: ‘Hope Rogers is a standard-bearer’

As Rogers alluded to, every player who reaches the half-century cap mark signifies the growth of the women’s game in the USA.

Burke spent ten years as the only woman to have reached and surpassed the 50-cap mark, and was over the moon to not only have Rogers join her, but at the prospect of many others reaching the same point and beyond.

"I said when I got my 50th cap that I would not be the last and that I was looking forward to not being lonely up there because it would mean that USA rugby and the women's programme was growing and we were increasing the number of competitive matches we were playing,” Burke explained.

“I'm excited because she is the next one, but I anticipate a number of additional folks over the coming couple of years adding into that group, and that's so exciting for what it means for the USA women's rugby programme.”

Rogers is synonymous with the growth of the Women’s Eagles and the women’s game.

"Hope is a standard-bearer. When you watch her play, she is still one of the most dominant players on the entire world stage. She sets the marker of what it looks like to be a USA rugby player” Burke said.

“Those young players can look at that role model and say, okay, if I'm an Eagle, this is what it looks like, this is what I have to aspire to be, this is how I have to work and how I have to carry myself. I think that she really sets that standard.”

The impact Rogers has had on the USA programme over the past 11 years is evident, with present players also readily extolling her virtues.

Cassidy Bargell, the 24-year-old scrum-half who made her first start in the same match that Rogers won her 50th cap, was sat beside the most recent player to reach the half-century milestone during post-match media duties.

Before our interview starts, Rogers happily discloses that her and Bargell are 100 cap numbers apart, a special link between the two who made their first appearances for the USA over ten years apart.

"Hope is one of the easiest people to look up to. She's so easy to follow. She's such a hard worker and a natural leader,” Bargell begins.

Cassidy Bargell (Eagle number 323, left) and Hope Rogers (Eagle number 223, right) sit together during post-match media following their WXV 1 match against Ireland in Vancouver. Credit: Imogen Ainsworth

“Everything she does is amazing and she pushes everyone in training to be the best version of themselves and is constantly bringing out the best in other people and yet is so humble. I can't say enough good things about Hope and how easy it is to look up to her and how much we want to work hard to make her proud. To share the field with her has been the best thing ever,” she adds with a smile.

Seeing newer Eagles flourishing and sharing the learnings she’s made throughout her journey is something that seems to truly delight Rogers, she lights up when discussing seeing the next generation grow.

Performance-wise, Rogers is up there as one of the best in the world, but her commitment to developing the legacy of USA rugby epitomises what makes her not only a world-class player, but a world-class person as well.

"I consider myself a bit of a caretaker. I'm a teacher as well. I love seeing the young props and like Cass being here, having her first start. We're 100 Eagles apart so it's really cool to see them growing. It's really inspiring to see their work rate and how talented they are at such a young age. My job is I want to impart as much knowledge as I can,” Rogers said.

“I'm not going to be in the game much longer, maybe we'll see how much more I can get out of this old body but I'm really excited to teach and impart all of the knowledge that I can because it's really about the legacy and building the jersey the best you can for the team that's about come.”

Head coach Sione Fukofuka, who joined USA Rugby from Rugby Australia in November 2023, had abundant praise for Rogers.

"If I had 15 Hope Rogers, we would be world number one,” he said. “She is a role model, she's a testament to resilience, but she's also extremely skilful. You'll see that every impact that she has is a positive one, she goes forwards.

“Alongside some of the other senior members, Kate [Zackary], Rachel [Johnson] and a number of others, our young squad that we're building is built around the foundations that they set.

“Hope is at the forefront of that and it's been a pleasure to come into this role and have the opportunity to coach her.”

Captain Kate Zackary also reminisced on the shared experiences she’s had with Rogers over the course of her career so far, and considered the impact that the prop has not only on those around her, but on a far wider scale.

"I've played with Hope now ever since I debuted in 2016, she's been around since 2013. We even had a stint in sevens together, I don't know how many people remember that, but Hope even played USA sevens. We talked a lot in our jersey ceremony about how she's changed the game of what a prop looks like,” the Trailfinders player said.

“She's dynamic, she's got great footwork, she's got pace, but then she can scrummage, she can set-piece, she can do the hard graft that you want from a prop but she can also play make, sometimes like a centre! It's great to have someone like that, and having her at the forefront of changing the game.

“You're seeing props not just in our own country but around the world aspiring to play how Hope does. She's a game changer, not just for us but for the game of rugby.”

The USA’s rich history in women’s rugby continues to write new chapters, and the first-ever country to win the Women’s Rugby World Cup in 1991 will kick off the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup against England, who they faced in the first two RWC finals.

If named in the squad, Rogers, who by then may have achieved the most caps in USA Women’s Eagles history, could feature in her fourth RWC.