St Helens winger Leah Burke says she was driven to prove the doubters wrong after her dream of being part of last year’s historic first women’s Betfred Challenge Cup final to be played at Wembley was dashed by a career-threatening knee injury.
The 25-year-old Burke had bounced out of the 2021 World Cup in which she scored six tries in England’s four matches but had little chance of capitalising on her headline-grabbing form after rupturing her ACL last June.
Instead Burke admits to bittersweet emotions watching from St Helens’ coaching box as her team-mates clinched a 22-8 win over Leeds – the same side they will face on Saturday as they bid to wrap up their fourth Challenge Cup title in a row.
“It was great watching the girls go out and make history at Wembley last year but I knew it could also have been me out there, and it definitely made me hungrier to get back there this year,” said Burke.
“You see people tear their ACL these days, particularly in women’s sport, and there’s talk about it being career-ending or not being able to return as the same player you were before.
“But right from the start I decided I wanted to step away from that stereotype and prove people wrong. I had the motivation not just to come back from injury, but to be better than ever.
“Obviously it was very tough but I had the support of both the Saints and England medical staff through the process, and without having them to hold my hand it could have been much tougher.”
Burke’s positive mindset paid off as she was back playing nine weeks after her operation, and proceeded to score a try in last month’s emphatic 32-2 semi-final win over York Valkyrie.
“Obviously the girls were delighted to beat York and get to Wembley again this year but for me it was like; ‘this is it, I’ve finally got my chance to get on that Wembley pitch’,” added Burke.
“Just to think how hard I had to work to get back playing, and then to get my shirt back in that squad, it made it a very emotional time.
“But losing in a final is the worst place to be, so going out there and putting in an 80-minute performance and lifting that trophy would round my whole journey off.”
