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When it comes to fashion, Akina Gondwe knows what she's talking about.
What originally started off as just a simple post of her outfit, which included a beret, on Instagram while supporting Saracens at The Showdown this year, has since seen the prop turn into a bit of a fashion icon.
From her effortless American streetwear vibes to retro rugby jerseys, Gondwe is paving her path in the fashion world away from rugby.
She's quick to note that her dress sense has not always been this cool, instead finding her style through those around her and Instagram inspiration over recent years, but it's something she's enjoyed curating as she looks to inspire others both on and off the pitch.
"I think on the whole, I know a lot of people who dress really well," she said. "My best friend who I grew up with, I would never tell her to her face but she dresses really well and so I decided to start trying new styles.
"My style I definitely wouldn't say it's natural, it's something I've worked on over time.
"I don't really think it was a conscious move to start posting on Instagram about my fashion, I just posted things and people pointed it out."
From noting teammate Zoe Harrison as one of the best dressed at Saracens, to scrolling through her Instagram 'For You’ page, Gondwe knows what she likes when she sees it.
And with so many French fashion influencers coming up, the beret continues to be a big part of her own wardrobe.
"There's loads of people I like," she said. "There's someone called Sofia Coelho, she has a really American streetwear vibe that I love. Marj [Moore] and her husband, I like the way she dresses, and they do couples outfits together.
"If I looked on my phone there are loads but of course I can't remember them on the top of my head! I get a lot of French people coming up and they are a stylish bunch."
As she continues to build a profile in fashion away from the rugby pitch, the Saracens forward is also making moves on it.
The prop switched the athletics track for rugby aged 15, noting that she had never even watched the sport before picking up a ball herself.
She immediately fell in love with the game and has gone on to excel, helping Saracens reach the Premiership Women's Rugby final last season.
But despite the welcome atmosphere at every turn, the lack of diversity of black players across the sport and at elite level is something that Gondwe is acutely aware of.
"I think inclusivity is one thing and diversity is another in rugby," she said. "When you look at the typical makeup of the sport, it has not been diverse."
It's a theme in Gondwe's personal and professional life that inspiring people is not necessarily the main thing on her agenda.
In reality, she is just doing her job and working hard to be the best rugby player she can be.
But if that hard work she puts in ends up encouraging other young black girls to pick up a rugby ball, or express themselves on their social media, then it's only a positive run-off from the work Gondwe is doing.
"I'm never actively thinking about which young black girl I'm going to inspire when I step on to the rugby pitch, but I turn up to train or play week in and week out to give everything," she said.
"If someone else sees that and thinks 'I can be that', then that is, for lack of a better term, 'job done'.
"Rugby is not crazy diverse, but if there's one person who sees me and decides to play then it's a positive."
With a new PWR season on the horizon, Gondwe is now looking ahead to replicating another top four-finish for Alex Austerberry's side.
Last season, Saracens missed out on lifting the trophy, falling 34-19 to Gloucester Hartpury in the final.
But after a strong pre-season and a 43-33 victory over Harlequins in the recent PWR Cup final, Gondwe is ready to hit the ground running this season, with a tantalising final replay against Gloucester-Hartpury first up.
"The squad that we have currently, they've worked so hard over pre-season and I am so excited for the season to start," she said.
"We obviously have some world class players to join us now and we start the season with Gloucester away which is a replay of the final straight off the bat.
"I'm excited to get into it, our goal is to do one better than last year as at points in that final we could have won, so that hurt more."
And with the added benefit of the Red Roses Rugby World Cup victory this summer, Gondwe is ready to jump on the momentum and welcome a new host of women's rugby fans to the StoneX this season.
"Looking broader, I think that the PWR has an incredible chance to build off the momentum that the Rugby World Cup has created this season," she said. "
They broke all these records for the attendances, and I think it would be a waste if we cannot now translate that to the PWR. That's the mindset that I have for this season."
