Saracens target first PWR title since 2022 as Blacklock eyes life beyond rugby

Saracens enter the Premiership Women’s Rugby play-offs with momentum behind them, having closed the regular season with three consecutive bonus-point victories — 54-0 over Sale Sharks, 62-24 against Loughborough Lightning, and 80-14 against Trailfinders Women — to finish second in the standings. They now host third-placed Exeter Chiefs in a home semi-final this Sunday, with a place in the 28 June final and a first league title since 2021/22 on the line.

The club already secured the PWR Cup earlier in the campaign, meaning a semi-final victory and a final win would deliver a coveted double — a result that would rank among the most significant in the club’s women’s rugby history.

One player pushing for a role in that run-in is 28-year-old centre Beth Blacklock. After spending much of the season on the fringes, she has earned back-to-back places on the bench in Saracens’ last two matches, contributing eight points from the kicking tee in the win over Trailfinders. Competition for places in the matchday 23 is fierce, but Blacklock has made her case at the right moment.

Her focus on the play-offs comes alongside a significant shift in her wider career. Earlier this year, Blacklock — who qualified for Scotland through her mother’s family connections and earned six caps — announced her retirement from international duty following the Rugby World Cup. Since then, she has been building a professional life outside the game.

“I have always been someone who has balanced rugby with other things,” Blacklock said. “Coming out of the Rugby World Cup last year and then making my Scotland decision in March, I have begun to think about other areas I’d like to work in and explore when my playing days are over.”

Previously a data product manager at Jaguar, Blacklock has returned to the working world with two new roles. She is now an account manager at Motion the Agency, a motion design firm working with AI, UX/UI, and 2D and 3D animation, and a sporting partnerships manager at the First Rep Group, where she helps elite athletes understand how their skills translate into the technology sector.

“A lot of what athletes have gained from sport is transferable and can help them excel in the technology sector,” she said. “It is about trying to help them navigate that transition.”

Blacklock, who came through Durham University, Darlington Mowden Park Sharks, and Harlequins before joining Saracens, described her current life as a deliberate balancing act. “I’m really enjoying these two roles and it’s nice having that mix between them and my rugby as well as spending time with my family and friends — I like to have a good mixture in the cocktail that is my life.”

With four teams remaining in the Premiership Women’s Rugby play-offs — Gloucester-Hartpury, Saracens, Exeter Chiefs, and one other — Saracens will be looking to Blacklock and their squad depth to carry the form of their regular-season finish into the knockout rounds.