England are world champions once again. The Red Roses claimed their third World Cup title with a comprehensive 33-13 win over Canada at Twickenham on Saturday, 11 years after they won their second against the Maple Leafs in Paris. A tournament record crowd of 81,885 watched on as the home side put in a clinical performance to leave no doubt as to who is the best team in the world.
The Canadians were quickest to the scoreboard. Asia Hogan-Rochester’s kick ahead pinned England in their end, and an overthrow at the lineout turned over possession. After attacking the middle, the ball went wide left where Fabiola Forteza was loitering, the flanker sucking in two defenders before offloading to an unmarked Hogan-Rochester for the finish.
A response from England was swift and decisive. Now on the back foot in the shadow of their posts, Alex Tessier appeared to be in two minds as her cross-kick was easily taken by Abby Dow. Within a minute the ball was in Ellie Kildunne’s hands on the left side, and the fullback stepped and swerved her way past four would-be tacklers to touch down under the posts.
The physicality of England’s defense shut the door on Canadian advances, and a dominant set piece did the rest. A scrum penalty set up an attacking lineout with Amy Cokayne getting credit from a driving maul try. Alex Matthews was next on the board, the No8 with an easy finish after another scrum had sent the Maple Leafs careening backwards.
Perhaps the defining moment of the game came with Canada knocking on England’s door. The ball was left unguarded at a ruck just a meter away from the line, handing Zoe Aldcroft the easiest of turnovers at a crucial moment. Sophie de Goede would land a penalty goal from the sustained pressure but England were well in control at the half with a 21-8 lead.
Another opportunity for Canada early in the second half came to nothing when Abbie Ward snatched away an attacking throw-in. It was appropriately Ward who would score next for England. Matthews tore off the back of a 5-meter scrum and the forwards blasted away until Ward went over from short range to make it a three-score game.
Hannah Botterman, a dominant figure in the first half, found herself on the sidelines after a tip-tackle on Karen Paquin. Canada were quick to take advantage with Hogan-Rochester going in for a double on the end of an overlap. Another score looked to be coming but a knock-on with England on their goal-line left another chance begging.
Any hope of a late comeback was dashed when Matthews grabbed her brace, this time powering through two defenders to ground the ball on the line. Zoe Harrison added her fourth conversion of the day and that would close out the scoring. The final minutes ticked off the clock with England repelling another Canadian attack before kicking the ball into the stands to the delight of the home faithful.
ENGLAND 33
Tries (5) – E. Kildunne (8′), A. Cokayne (19′), A. Matthews 2 (26′, 68′), A. Ward (50′)
Cons (4) – Z. Harrison 4/5 (9′ 20′, 27′, 69′)
YC (1) – H. Botterman (52′)
CANADA 13
Tries (2) – A. Hogan-Rochester 2 (5′, 53′)
Cons (0) – S. de Goede 0/2
Pens (1) – S. de Goede 1/1 (34′)
ENGLAND
1 Hannah Botterman (17 Kelsey Clifford 62′), 2 Amy Cokayne (16 Lark Atkin-Davies 61′), 3 Maud Muir (18 Sarah Bern 61′), 4 Morwenna Talling (19 Rosie Galligan 69′), 5 Abbie Ward (20 Maddie Feaunati 69′), 6 Zoe Aldcroft (capt.), 7 Sadia Kabeya, 8 Alex Matthews, 9 Natasha Hunt (21 Lucy Packer 61′), 10 Zoe Harrison, 11 Jess Breach (17 Kelsey Clifford 59′-62′) (23 Helena Rowland 67′), 12 Tatyana Heard (22 Holly Aitchison 67′), 13 Megan Jones, 14 Abby Dow, 15 Ellie Kildunne
CANADA
1 McKinley Hunt (17 Brittany Kassil HT), 2 Emily Tuttosi (16 Gillian Boag 66′), 3 DaLeaka Menin (18 Olivia DeMerchant 69′), 4 Sophie de Goede, 5 Courtney O’Donnell (19 Tyson Beukeboom 53′), 6 Caroline Crossley (21 Gabrielle Senft 66′), 7 Karen Paquin (20 Laetitia Royer 66′), 8 Fabiola Forteza, 9 Justine Pelletier (22 Olivia Apps 53′), 10 Taylor Perry, 11 Asia Hogan-Rochester, 12 Alex Tessier (capt.), 13 Florence Symonds, 14 Alysha Corrigan, 15 Julia Schell (23 Shoshanah Seumanutafa 73′)
Date: Saturday, September 27
Venue: Twickenham, London
Kickoff: 16:00 local
Weather: cloudy, 61°F (16°C), wind S 10-15mph (16-24km/h)
Attendance: 81,885
Referee: Hollie Davidson (Scotland)
Assistants: Aimee Barrett-Theron (South Africa) & Clara Munarini (Italy)
TMO: Leo Colgan (Ireland)
