Irvine’s Emma Middleditch says she feels “really fortunate” to have taken part in a world record sevens challenge that lasted 28 hours recently and says it was a “truly incredible” experience.
So, where did the idea for the world record attempt come from?
Well, the driving force behind it all was the good folk from LooseHeadz, rugby’s mental health charity that uses the power of rugby to start conversations, tackle stigma and save lives.
The charity linked up with hosts Sandbach RUFC to bring together players, officials, volunteers and supporters for an unforgettable challenge that aimed to rewrite the record books while also strengthening the rugby community.
The ‘24/7s’ challenge got underway at 12pm on July 24 in Cheshire when two marathon sevens matches for men and women began – and they would not stop until 4pm on July 25.
The goal for the men was to play for longer than the Guinness World Record of 24 hours and 30 minutes set in 2017 while, for the women, with no record in place the challenge was to put down a marker and create a record that would be hard to beat.
The matches followed official sevens rugby laws, ensuring the challenge remained a legitimate competitive contest, even as fatigue inevitably set in.
And, after an epic two days involving players from all over the place who all had their own personal reasons for getting involved, provisional world records were set for the longest ever men’s and women’s sevens matches lasting 28 hours each.
Perhaps even more importantly, more than £69,000 was raised via the challenge for LooseHeadz and the great work that they do.
And 24-year-old centre Emma said: “I actually kind of stumbled upon the challenge by chance.
“One of my friends had put up a story via her Instagram account saying that she was getting involved. I thought that it looked so cool and asked her for more information as I was keen to take part. She then sent me the sign up form and, soon enough, I had been accepted to take part.
“The experience was truly incredible.
“We started off doing ‘shifts’ of three and a half hours on and then a break of two and a half hours.
“As time went on and people starting picking up various injuries the time on the field increased and rest time decreased. However, I was very happy to stay on and play as much as I could to help us reach our goal and I calculated I was on the field for 21 hours.
“Throughout it all the team managers did brilliant to ensure everyone had time to have proper food and rest if and when we needed it so it was truly a team effort.
“At around 25 hours in, the team managers had a quick chat with us all and told us that, to ensure we would definitely have the record, we would have to play three more hours. We were all already exhausted, but what was another few hours after 25?
“We all encouraged each other and slowly worked our way up to 28 hours. It was definitely getting tough by the end, but we were so close that we all powered through and the women’s and men’s teams supported each other.
“The feeling once we had completed it was amazing, I don’t think any of us could actually believe we had actually reached 28 hours and it was a sense of relief, gratitude and happiness. I feel really fortunate to have been involved, , it was a truly amazing display of determination, togetherness and unity.
“I love challenging myself and doing new things so this was the perfect opportunity.
“Moreover, being surrounded by likeminded people really made it special and showed how far humans can push ourselves. I’d also like to give a big shout out to the volunteers and team managers for keeping the vibes up throughout the entire 28 hours – at least I had some rugby to play to keep myself entertained so hats off to them for their dedication by the side of the pitch making sure everything ran smoothly and that we had all we need.
“I think my favourite moment of the whole challenge was actually in the early hours of the Saturday morning. It was cold and dark, the floodlights were on and we were well into the night shift.
“I initially thought I would struggle most at this point, but I actually had the most fun! Being slightly delirious after no sleep, playing rugby in the dark with music in the background, dancing and sharing silly moments – it was just great fun.
“I definitely did find the whole thing challenging at points, but I kept reminding myself of how lucky I was to be able to be playing the sport I love for so long alongside amazing women and it was brilliant.”
Emma grew up in Singapore and did not play rugby early on.
She did play a bit of Touch and always had giving rugby a go on her mind, but she was focusing on competing in triathlon at an elite level and representing Singapore at various international competitions.
“It was when I moved to university that I got involved in rugby,” she explains.
“I was actually doing a semester abroad in Wisconsin in the US and joined the rugby team there. They were such a welcoming group and I had so much fun that I joined Stirling University’s team when I came back to Scotland to continue my passion of playing rugby.
“I joined Irvine thanks to one of the girls from uni. She had played with them for a few years and they were looking for girls to help them out for a few games.
“Straight away I loved being a part of the team so I joined them and played every game I could. I have now been with the club for two years and they are such a wonderful team and really foster that feeling of family which I love.
“The vibes in the team are always positive and it is such an uplifting environment to be a part of at Irvine.
“Rugby just allows me to express myself, I am able to jump on the pitch, be fearless and just feel free.
“It allows me to forget everything else and just focus on trying my best as well as enjoying playing with my team mates. I also love that every game is different and challenging in various ways so it’s always exciting.”
Irvine’s women’s Arnold Clark West Two campaign for 2026/27 starts at home to Uddingston on September 6.
Emma Middleditch and the challenge teams are pictured – thanks to Emma and Looseheadz
It is shaping up to be an exciting 2026/27 season for women’s rugby in Scotland and GH Media will be covering it in detail – if any companies are keen to support this content please send an email to gary@gh-media.co.uk