Dare heads home to Devon

Zoe Dare will return to her Devon roots when she begins a new contract with Exeter Chiefs Women next season.

The back-row will move down the M5 from Gloucester-Hartpury to begin a new phase of her rugby-playing career after completing an MSc in sports management at Hartpury University.

Born in Chipping Norton in Oxfordshire, the Dare family moved to Devon when Zoe was eight. Her first rugby club was Cullompton RFC. She played for Devon U15s and U18s while she attended Blundell’s School before heading to Cardiff University to study environmental sustainability science. It was as captain of the women’s 1st XV at the university where she caught the eye of the Hartpury selectors.

Exeter Chiefs Women’s interim head coach Steve Salvin said: “Zoe is a young, England qualified player with loads of potential. She is keen to return home to be closer to her family but is also ambitious to further her game with us here. We are looking forward to seeing what she can do next season.”

The 22-year-old will not be the first member of the Dare family to be involved in the Exeter Chiefs programme. Her older brother Hal was a former member of the Exeter Chiefs Academy.

She said: “I’m super excited to be coming back to Devon and to be near my family. But most of all, I am excited about the opportunity ahead of me next season.”