Abi Burton targets Lions call-up after breakthrough season with Trailfinders

Abi Burton heads into the Premiership Women’s Rugby Final against Saracens with a Lions tour place firmly in her sights, capping a season in which the Trailfinders No.8 has transformed herself into one of the competition’s most complete back-row forwards.

The 26-year-old has played 13 PWR matches this season, scoring seven tries while making 160 carries, beating 18 defenders and gaining 390 metres after contact. Her 167 tackles underline a two-way contribution that has made her a cornerstone of a Trailfinders side reaching their first-ever PWR Final.

“This season has definitely been a turning point for me,” Burton told RugbyPass. “Last season I broke my hand and unfortunately got a red card early on into the season. I had no playing consistency.”

The turnaround has been striking. After Trailfinders finished sixth in their inaugural 2023/24 season and seventh the following year, they have now ended Gloucester Hartpury’s bid for a fourth consecutive title and stand one win from the championship.

“Excitement levels are through the roof,” Burton said. “It’s something that we set out for at the start of the season. We wanted to make top four. Anyone who plays rugby in the PWR wants to get to a PWR Final, but ultimately we wanted to be able to go out there and show who we are as Trailfinders with our best attack and defence, see where it gets us — and it’s got us to a PWR Final.”

Burton’s season extended well beyond club rugby. She featured for England at the Women’s Rugby World Cup, completing 80 minutes against Samoa, before being called into the Red Roses’ Six Nations squad as an emergency second-row when pregnancies and injuries ruled out four first-choice locks. She started against Scotland and Wales in the unfamiliar loosehead lock position before returning to the back-row for the victories over Italy and France that helped England claim the title.

Her versatility was shaped in part by Trailfinders head coach Barney Maddison, himself a former lock who guided her through the positional switch at short notice.

Standing between Burton and a clean sweep of Women’s Rugby World Cup, Six Nations and PWR honours is a Saracens side that has its own collection of players chasing the same prize. Marlie Packer, Sophie de Goede, Jess Breach, Olivia Apps and Zoe Harrison are among those who could complete an identical trophy treble. Saracens won the PWR title in 2022, finished runners-up last season, and beat Trailfinders home and away in the regular season.

For Burton, the personal stakes stretch beyond Sunday’s final. A Lions tour to Australia is scheduled for 2026, and she has made clear she intends to be part of it.

“I’m fighting to go on a Lions tour next year,” she said — a statement that, given the evidence of this season, few would now dismiss.