Baildon talent driven to go far with York and England

That is hardly surprising, given the 20-year-old has brothers that used to play for, and a boyfriend that currently plays for, the Counties Two Yorkshire side, and she concedes her Saturdays are usually taken up by watching the team, shouting louder than anyone else in the crowd.

But it is Sundays where Kershaw is in her element, playing a starring role out on the wing for arguably the country’s best female side, York Valkyrie, while her brother Lee does the same at London Broncos in the men’s top-flight.

A key cog in their machine, Kershaw scored four tries in York’s 28-8 Betfred Women’s Super League win at Barrow last month, while also crossing the whitewash in a dramatic opening-day victory over St Helens.

But last week’s defeat to Leeds Rhinos was York’s first in the league for nearly two years, and puts the pressure on Kershaw and her team-mates ahead of tomorrow’s Challenge Cup semi-final against Saints.

The England Knights talent caught up with the T&A at The Garden Bar in Baildon on Tuesday evening (where she challenged this reporter to some games of pool and he defended the paper’s honour by winning all three) to discuss her life and career so far:

Q: YOUR WHOLE FAMILY IS INVOLVED IN RUGBY, SO IS IT SOMETHING YOU’VE WANTED TO DO AS A CAREER SINCE YOU WERE A YOUNG GIRL?

A: I first started in Year Six, with my best friend at the time, and she was the one who got me into rugby because she played it.

I knew my brothers played, and I’d been watching them since I was little, but my friend really got me into it at Baildon C of E.

From that moment I loved it, but I started playing union, and only moved into league when I was 16.

Q: WHY DID YOU MAKE THAT SWITCH FROM UNION TO LEAGUE?

A: Lee was playing at Wakefield, and they were just creating an Under-16 girls’ team at the time.

He told me about it, and my mum said I might as well try it for a season and I’ve stuck with it since then.

Q: HOW DID YOUR MOVE FROM WAKEFIELD TO YORK, ONE OF WOMEN’S SUPER LEAGUE’S ‘SUPER TEAMS’, COME ABOUT?

A: I was at Wakefield and though I really enjoyed being on the team with the girls, it wasn’t a nice feeling not having won a game.

I worked really hard there and I wanted something to show for it, which is why I moved to York.

Q: WOMEN’S RUGBY LEAGUE SEEMS TO HAVE TAKEN OFF IN THE LAST FEW YEARS, SO ARE YOU GRATEFUL THAT’S THE CASE WHEN YOU’VE GOT YOUR BEST YEARS AHEAD OF YOU?

A: At training, we see the Under-19s and the RISE programme we’ve got at York, and it’s really nice to see the girls being given the chance to advance their skills away from the community club.

I see a few of the girls after our games on Sundays and they say they can’t wait to see me again at training on the Wednesday and it’s nice to know they’re working to get into a position to be in the same team as us.

Q: IS IT DIFFICULT TO MOTIVATE YOURSELF FOR ALL GAMES WHEN YORK, LEEDS AND SAINTS (TO AN EXTENT, WIGAN TOO) ARE SO MUCH BETTER THAN THE REST OF THE LEAGUE?

A: We have to look at every game as the end game.

We need to stick to what we do well in our sets and just do everything we can to the best of our ability.

Every game is a competition and we have to look at it that way.

Q: YORK AND SAINTS LAST MONTH WAS A DOUBLE HEADER BEFORE YOUR MEN’S SIDE PLAYED BULLS, WHILE YOUR CUP SEMI-FINAL AGAINST THE SAME SIDE PRECEDES HULL KR PLAYING WIGAN IN DONCASTER THIS SATURDAY IN THE MEN’S LAST FOUR.

DO YOU LIKE THE EXPOSURE OF A DOUBLE HEADER OR WOULD YOU RATHER WOMEN’S RUGBY LEAGUE GOT TO STAND ON ITS OWN TWO FEET, WITHOUT THE MEN?

A: Personally, I absolutely love the double headers.

At York, there’s a big thing about the club being one team and the double headers we have with our men pushes that message completely.

It drives more people to come along, because it’s not just one game, it’s a full day thing.

It brings in more crowds, it generates more interest, and with this weekend, it shows what Women’s Super League and Men’s Super League can do.

York's double headers at the LNER Community Stadium tend to draw good crowds. (Image: Craig Hawkhead.)

Q: YORK’S DEFEAT TO LEEDS LAST WEEKEND WAS THEIR FIRST IN THE REGULAR SUPER LEAGUE SEASON SINCE JULY 2022, SO HOW DO YOU GO ABOUT COPING WITH THAT NOW, WITH IT BEING SUCH A RARE OCCURRENCE?

A: On Monday, we had a video review of the things that went right and wrong, and how we need to change and improve things.

Looking back, we can’t fault what Leeds did to us, but we have to look forward to the cup game with Saints now.

We just have to do better this weekend, because everyone wants to get to Wembley for the final, so we have to work harder than last Sunday if we want to beat Saints.

Q: YOU’VE BEEN CALLED UP BY THE ENGLAND KNIGHTS THIS SEASON, SO CAN WE ASSUME THAT BEING A REGULAR ENGLAND INTERNATIONAL IS ONE OF YOUR MAJOR GOALS IN THE YEARS TO COME?

A: Since I joined York (ahead of the 2022 season), I’ve had that aspiration to get further, to promote myself and to promote women’s rugby league.

Being in the England Knights squad is something that’s quite emotional to talk about, because I feel like it’s a big honour for me.

When I was in union, I got to the Centre of Excellence, but I never got into any of the England squads.

I left union too early in the end to ever get picked for any of that.

But I wouldn’t go back to union, because I’m enjoying league and looking forward to what the future holds for it.

Q: WE INITIALLY MET WHEN BAILDON VISITED YARNBURY LAST MONTH, AND YOU WERE WATCHING LEE’S SUPER LEAGUE GAME ON YOUR PHONE WHILE CHEERING ON YOUR HOMETOWN CLUB MORE THAN ANYONE ELSE IN THE CROWD, SO JUST HOW ALL-CONSUMING IS RUGBY FOR YOU?

A: It’s the whole of my life pretty much.

I’m sort of getting a life now if you like, at 20, but every weekend I go and watch the Baildon lads, and then I’ll go out and play for York the next day.

I always try and watch my brother’s Super League games, whether it’s in person or on my phone.

I don’t know where I’d be if I didn’t play rugby.

Q: BEING FROM A RUGBY-MAD FAMILY, JUST HOW SUPPORTIVE HAVE THEY BEEN TO YOU IN YOUR CAREER?

A: They’ve massively backed me.

We train twice a week at York, it’s 50 miles away for me and I don’t drive at the minute.

My mum and dad drive me to and from training every week, because I don’t live near anyone else in the squad who could give me a lift.

I owe them pretty much everything.

Emma Kershaw with her brother Lee and her father at a Baildon RUFC game. (Image: Mick Massey.)

Q: SPEAKING OF BEING SUPPORTIVE, FOR ALL THE VALKYRIE PLAYERS HAVE AMBITIONS OF WINNING TITLES AND PLAYING FOR THEIR COUNTRY, IT SEEMS LIKE YOU’RE A REALLY TIGHT-KNIT SQUAD WHO CARE ABOUT EACH OTHER, SO HOW MUCH DOES THAT MEAN TO YOU?

A: It’s really nice to have that connection with the girls.

People sometimes think, because we’ve joined York from all these different clubs like Saints, Cas, Bradford, Wakefield etc, that might be a negative.

But it’s not that, we’ve all come in as one, we all look out for each other and there’s a great community feeling at the club.

Q: YOU TEACH PE IN A SCHOOL AS WELL AS PLAYING FOR YORK, HOW DO YOU FIND BALANCING WHAT SOUNDS LIKE QUITE A HECTIC LIFESTYLE?

A: It’s quite constant but the company I work for (White Rose) are amazing at helping me out with that.

I grew up playing at Baildon Rugby Club and the people at White Rose were involved with the club, so I’ve known them since I was little.

They know how much playing rugby means to me and how I need to have that drive for it.

Because teaching PE is a sporting job, the company will always account for my rugby needs, so if I tell them I need to leave at a certain time for something Valkyrie-related, they’re happy to let me go and do that.

Q: YOU HAVE A PROFESSIONAL CONTRACT AT YORK, SO DO YOU WANT TO BE IN A POSITION WHERE THAT’S YOUR SOLE FOCUS AND YOU’RE NOT TEACHING AS WELL?

A: Rugby league is paying me and I’m on a two-year contract at York, but it’s not a living wage and I don’t expect it to be at the moment, with how Women’s Super League is still growing.

But I’m so grateful that York are showing us something for the hours, days, months and years we’re putting in.