Abigail Dow

A vital player for both the England national team and Trailfinders Women, Abigail Dow is one of the premier wingers in women’s rugby. More commonly known as Abby Dow, she is one of England’s most celebrated players. Her accolades include being named in the World Rugby Dream Team of the Year (2021, 2022 and 2023) and being awarded the Try of the Year accolade in 2022.

Born in Slough on 29 September 1997, Dow’s rugby journey began at the age of five. Encouraged by her sports-loving family, she joined her local club Maidenhead RFC, where her dad, Paul Dow, was a coach. Her natural talent saw her progress to the Reading girls’ team alongside her sister, Ruth.

Dow balanced her early rugby career with her academic pursuits. After finishing school, she secured a place at Imperial College London. She graduated from the prestigious university in 2021 with a masters degree in mechanical engineering.

During this time, Dow’s club career took off. She signed with Wasps Ladies in 2016 and received a professional contract with England in 2020. Next, she transferred to Harlequins Women for the 2022-23 season. The following year, she made headlines by becoming the first signing for a new West London club, Trailfinders Women. 

The Trailfinders were one of two new teams to join the Premiership for the 2023-24 season. As expected, Dow delivered for her new club. She finished as the season’s top try scorer with 12 tries.

On the international stage, Dow debuted for England in 2017. She appeared at the Old Mutual Wealth Series, scoring five tries in her first two tests. Since then, she has been a regular fixture. She often appears at the Six Nations and has played a crucial role in the team’s Grand Slam victories (2019, 2020, 2022, 2023 and 2024).

Dow made her first Six Nations appearance in 2018, where she scored three tries across three fixtures. In 2020, she was the joint top try scorer with four tries. In 2023, she crossed the line four times against Italy, beating Le Azzurre 68-5.

Elsewhere, one of Dow’s career highlights came at the 2021 Rugby World Cup. Here she scored a brace of tries against Canada in the semi-finals. She also started in the final but a head injury led to her being replaced.

With a wealth of talent and so much of her career still ahead, we’ll be watching what Abby Dow does next.