Rachel Malcolm and Daisy Hibbert-Jones have been announced as Loughborough Lightning’s co-captains for the 2024/25 Premiership Women’s Rugby season.
Number eight Hibbert-Jones has led the team for the first three games of the season as well as the two PWR Up Series matches in preseason.
The 22-year-old has amassed 41 appearances since making her debut against Wasps in 2022 and made her Red Roses debut in 2023.
Hibbert-Jones took on the leadership role while flanker Malcolm was away with Scotland participating in WXV and the internationals that preceded it.
Malcolm, 33, is a Lightning original, captaining the side in their first-ever game against Worcester Warriors in September 2017. She has gone on to make 69 appearances, all as captain, for the African Violets and has also skippered Scotland since the 2019/20 season.
“Rachel is a brilliant leader and done a great job,” said Lightning head coach, Nathan Smith. “She has done it for many years, she’s a Lightning original from the first team to ever have a hit out.
“But due to current schedules she spends a lot of time away from Lightning and Daisy has done a fantastic job in Rachel’s absence.
“It didn’t feel right for either of them to not do it. For me, I am not one who would have thought I’d picked co-captains, however the nature of the competition so far, it is the right thing to do.
“Both individually would do a brilliant job, and Rachel has done a fantastic job up until this point, but I do feel that they are better together. There’s no better person for Daisy to learn from how to be a captain, speak to a group and behaviours, than Rachel herself. I think it is a cool partnership that we’re very fortunate to have.”
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