Her father played in the first-ever Super League game and now Zoe Pastre-Courtine has been added to the Catalans Nines squad for their own tilt at rugby league history this Sunday.
The Catalans Goddesses will bring a smaller squad to the RFL Women’s Nines finals at AJ Bell Stadium than travelled to Warrington for the pool matches on May 1. Three players – Meava Saboya, Solene Dagues and Elodi Peculi – will stay home.
The sole addition is 21-year-old French international centre Zoe Pastre-Courtine.
Her 52-year-old father Regis had the honour of playing in the opening game of the 1996 season at Paris’ Charlety Stadium for Paris Saint-Germain against Sheffield – the first Super League game ever played, including in the Southern Hemisphere where the competition started the following year.
Regis also played for Batley during the 1994-95 winter season before switching to PSG for the then new and controversial Murdoch-backed summer league.
He made three appearances for France in 1996 and 1997, scoring two tries.
Sunday’s event, which will see the Goddesses battle it out with five English teams to be the first European Nines club champions, is the first official women’s league in Britain to carry prize money.
