The rising popularity of women’s rugby in Canada hasn’t been lost on Banff as the mountain town may have produced one of Alberta’s rising stars in the sport.
Sixteen-year-old Ashah Payson was the youngest member of Team Alberta at the U18 Age Grade Nationals Tournament in Calgary, Aug. 5-10, and helped power her team to a third-place finish against the best teenagers in the country. Playing wing, she dazzled her coaches and bedeviled her opponents with blistering speed and fine footwork.
“It was so awesome. The skill level is so high and you’re working so hard, because you want it so bad. It’s so much fun,” Payson said.
After watching older girls she looked up to get into the sport, and seeing the BCHS boys team begin to win championships, she began playing with the Banff Community High School girls rugby team two years ago. Payson showed raw talent on a very new team, fell in love with the sport, tried out for the provincial team and now wants to reach Canada’s top level.
“I like it because it’s such a team sport. With all of these girls, you have to play together, communicate, trust each other. It’s definitely physical and you get in good shape pretty fast,” Payson said.
Speed is the name of her game, as years on the ski slopes have given her powerful, tree-trunk legs perfect for rugby. She’s also a strong basketball and volleyball player, and doesn’t plan to give up skiing any time soon.
“I run fast. I’m built in the lower body and difficult to take down,” Payson said.
She’d love to play for Team Alberta again next year, and has launched a crowdfunding campaign at the website makeachamp/ashahpayson to collect donations, and also picked up a job at Cow’s in Banff to fund her dream. Playing with the provincial team has already enhanced her skills and she plans to increase her upper body strength in the off-season.
“When you’re able to play at such a high level, you learn so much,” Payson said.
She’s also been inspired watching Canada’s women’s rugby team reach new heights on the World Cup stage; losing in the final to England.
“I watched the semi-finals and finals. Magali Harvey is so amazing. She is so quick and her reaction time is incredible. She’s inspiring an idea of what I’d like to be,” Payson said. “I want to play for Alberta again next year, and would really love to play for a sevens national team. That’s my game.”
