Jessica Abele to become first Exonian to captain Women’s Varsity Rugby team

Two Exeter students will play in the Women’s Varsity Rugby match at Twickenham on 2 April 2022. Megan Isaac (2019, PPE) and Jessica Abele (2019, DPhil candidate in Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics) will play in the match, with Jessica becoming the first Exonian ever to captain the women’s side in the varsity match and the first Exeter captain since John Kendall-Carpenter in 1950.

As well as playing for the Blues, Megan also plays professionally for Gloucester-Hartpury Rugby Club, who play in the Allianz Premier 15s League, England’s top division of rugby, as well as in the European Challenge Cup. She commented: “We’re really looking forward to being back at Twickenham this year; it’s a great opportunity for us and after beating Cambridge 12-10 a few weeks ago, we are hoping we can go there and get a win. We are looking stronger and getting closer as a squad with every session, so we’re excited for the weeks to come.”

Congratulations to Megan and Jessica on this amazing achievement, and we wish them good luck for 2 April! You can buy a ticket to cheer them on at Twickenham at thevarsitymatches.com.

Team Photo after winning the annual Major Stanley’s fixture (Jessica holding cup)

Varsity Rugby Matches poster (Megan pictured on the left)