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When the match ended, a wave of relief swept through. With a massive turnout watching, she hugged her England teammate Lucy Packer and finally grasped that the England team had secured the Rugby World Cup. The championship match versus Canada had been so “exhausting,” Kabeya found it difficult to accept they were global titleholders until she heard that sound. “It was incredible,” Kabeya says. “The end-of-game signal was a lot of relief, a moment to exhale and then: ‘Wow, we’ve accomplished it.’”

England’s triumph capped a dominant three years, a 33 consecutive victories, but the wider effect is what Kabeya remembers most. In particular, getting off the team bus to be met with throngs of fans and the cheers from over 81,000 spectators after the anthems.

“I find it hard to describe,” the young forward says. “The team procession was spectacular, a once in a lifetime experience. Just to observe the enormous encouragement, the diversity in it – families, people who are less mature, more senior, many male attendees – it was huge. I certainly need to review footage to relive it because I don’t think I captured it enough because I was a bit in awe.

“You look up and you observe the entire crowd. I recall people gesturing and being like: ‘Check it out.’ It was insane. I instantly reached for my device, I was like: ‘I have to record this.’”

If Kabeya was provided lasting recollections then she also made some for the fans, with a starring display in the final leading the Red Roses to a decisive triumph. Fans voiced her now-familiar chant at the title-winning party the day after, when the “celebratory tune” chorus was led by her England teammate Hannah Botterman. These are all moments she did not comprehend could be a reality a ten years back.

Kabeya first started playing rugby about in a nearby London area, at the Harris city academy in Croydon, south London. Starting out with male peers, she was encouraged by the PE teacher and ex-international player Bryony Cleall to pursue the sport. When she started at her initial team, away from south London, she felt she had to change parts of herself to belong.

“It was in another part of town, which is a largely homogeneous neighborhood,” Kabeya says. “I was just starting out and I aimed to blend in so I modified my preferences the songs I enjoyed, how I was speaking. I don’t speak how I used to speak when I was in high school but I was a proper south London girl when I joined the club and I attempted to suppress that and hold back.

“It’s only as I have gone along in the sport and met other people who look like me and have helped me rediscover myself that I am finding [my] personality. I am authentic today.”

Alongside inspiring the next generation, Kabeya has designed gear which will eliminate obstacles deterring involvement. Collaborating with a partner, she has created a satin scrum cap to protect a range of hair types from rubbing, rubbing and drying.

“It’s been a process because we had to identify perfect textiles with how it can perform without causing discomfort as it has to be something you can wear in rugby, where you’re losing fluids and getting through a lot of work but also keeping your hair safe.

“A protective cap is something that has been around for a long, long time, it’s not a novel invention. But to add this layer, it is such a small thing but it can make such a big difference. In my younger days I used to use makeshift protection because I aimed to maintain my hairstyle but I was passionate about rugby so it wasn't an issue.

I was a proper south London girl when I joined the club and I wanted to change that and conceal my true identity

“However, for some girls that would be enough. It would be: ‘I’m avoiding participation because I want to protect my hair, I aim to maintain health.’ To have something that could keep people in the game or welcome additional athletes is huge.”

The ending of this World Cup cycle has been golden for Kabeya. Her next appearance in an England jersey will be in the Six Nations in next season, while in the meantime her priorities include the forthcoming domestic league for her side, Loughborough Lightning. In the period leading up to the tournament, she found it rather difficult, facing physical issues and a “mental dip” during the previous competition: “I came in thinking: ‘Oh I’ll be alright, I’ll be able to ride it out.’

“I think the harder her personal life was, the worse it got on pitch. I was capable of stepping back and put in the effort and speak to the right people to get myself in the best head space for a World Cup. I think, particularly in athletics, you frequently postpone action to seek solutions. Whereas now, utilizing available help and experts I can consult regularly rather than facing problems later is significant.”