Julia Schell's journey from ice hockey to Trailfinders in the PWR

When it comes to the importance of physicality in women’s sports, Julia Schell has a proud history of activism.

Like all kids in Canada, ice hockey was her first port of sporting call.

But open-ice hitting is banned in the women’s game and that never sat comfortably with the Ontario native.

“My mum loves this story, but when I was 10 or 11, I started a petition at my elementary school,” remembers Schell. “I wanted women to be able to hit in hockey and I didn’t understand why it couldn’t be the same.”

Schell’s ice hockey coach also oversaw the rugby team and let her skip a day of school to watch a game for the first time.

“Seeing the men’s and women’s game being literally the exact same was such a cool thing for me,” she says.

“I think the combination of that and the physicality I had from hockey - I also played soccer growing up - it was a cool mix.”

Fast forward a couple of years and Schell is one of a burgeoning contingent of Canadians in Premiership Women’s Rugby, pioneering her nation’s rugby union culture.

The Trailfinders Women fly-half played an instrumental role in Canada’s recent impressive campaign in WXV1 on home soil in Vancouver, pushing the Red Roses all the way in their final game.

“Being at home and playing in front of Canadian fans is always awesome,” she said. “We don’t have the biggest rugby background in the world, it’s really fun seeing so many kids at the games and trying to grow the sport in our own country.

“We managed to put on some pretty good shows for them. It was an awesome experience, any time with that group I will cherish forever, it’s such a fun environment.”

Time to pick your Try of the Week 👇

🐯 Francesca McGhie, @TigersWomens
💚 Julia Schell, @TrailfindersW
⚔️ Eilidh Sinclair, @ExeChiefsWomen
🐻 Millie David, @BristolBearsW

Vote below 🗳️#PWR #PoweredDifferently pic.twitter.com/vZNgun4Qq9

— Premiership Women's Rugby (@ThePWR) November 5, 2024

Schell believes her time in PWR has helped her demystify the world’s top players.

“I used to come up against these big names so infrequently,” she said.

“Now, I’m playing them week in and week out. I’m seeing them every weekend and it feels like the pressure is a bit lower when I play against them, it’s a little bit less nerve-wracking for me.”

The same has been true for Schell’s national team colleagues and she is proud to be part of a growing group of Canadian players in the league.

“I think we see a great reflection of it on the international stage, when we all come back together,” she said. “You can tell we’re not rusty and that consistency has been so awesome for our time.

😎 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗔 𝗕𝗮𝗱 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁!

Julia Schell topped the team with 115 metres made against Exeter on her return from WXV!#FollowTheTrail 💚 pic.twitter.com/oQt4LiXU5w

— Trailfinders Women (@TrailfindersW) October 29, 2024

“Different clubs have different styles of play and we need to bring that all back together, but having familiar faces almost every weekend has been like a little piece of home. Sometimes you get a little bit homesick so it’s been great seeing people, we hang out after games and sometimes stay with them.”

Schell’s impact is not restricted to the field of play. Last season, she embarked on a community coaching role and took charge of a men’s team at University of West London, learning plenty herself from the experience.

“I’ve found it super rewarding,” she said.

“They were such a fun group of kids and keen to learn. It was really cool, being a female coach, they looked up to me so much - it wasn’t just, ‘whatever, she doesn’t have much to say.’ They were super receptive.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by jules (@juliaschell)

“I was a little bit conscious of that coming in, but that was gone in a flash because they were so welcoming, willing to learn and ask questions.”

The prospect of the 2025 World Cup is clearly a tantalising one for Schell, but her first focus is driving the Trailfinders project forwards.

“A top four finish is what we’re aiming for,” she said. “Being new in the league last year, we were getting our feet wet, and now we can see we’re putting more points on bigger teams and pushing those boundaries.

“We want to keep that pressure on and show we’re not just happy to be here any more.”