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How England reached their latest Rugby World Cup final
By PA
England will face New Zealand in the women’s Rugby World Cup final at Eden Park on Saturday. The Red Roses are chasing a third world title, having won the tournament in 1994 and 2014, while New Zealand have triumphed on five occasions, with four of their victorious finals being against England. Here, the PA news agency looks at England’s route to the final in Auckland:
Pool C: England 84 Fiji 19
England arrived in New Zealand following a comprehensive tournament warm-up victory over Wales, and they continued their free-scoring form by brushing aside Fiji. Claudia MacDonald claimed four of England’s 14 tries as the Red Roses passed their previous-best points total in a World Cup game of 82, set against Kazakhstan 12 years ago.
Pool C: England 13 France 7
The Red Roses knew France would provide comfortably their toughest pool stage test, and so it proved during a pulsating encounter in Whangarei. Centre Emily Scarratt scored all of England’s points through a try, conversion and two penalties, steering her team into pole position as potential Pool C winners.
Pool C: England 75 South Africa 0
England head coach Simon Middleton rang the changes for his squad’s final pool game – six players made their first tournament appearance – but another impressive and efficient display proved way too much for South Africa. Rosie Galligan and Connie Powell each scored try hat-tricks as the Red Roses cruised home.
Quarter-final: England 41 Australia 5
Skipper Sarah Hunter became the most-capped player in English rugby union history, making her 138th Test match appearance as the Red Roses overcame testing wet conditions in Auckland to knock out Australia. Hunter scored England’s opening try, while her back-row colleague Marlie Packer touched down three times on a day when England’s forwards took charge.
Semi-final: England 26 Canada 19
England recorded a 30th successive Test match victory, but they were made to fight every inch of the way before securing a place in the final. Wing Abby Dow scored two tries, including a brilliant individual effort, with Packer also touching down and Scarratt kicking 11 points that ultimately kept resilient opponents at bay.
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Latest Comments
Get world rugby to buy a few Islands in the Mediterranean. Name them Rugby Island #1, #2, #3 etc. All teams are based there all season and as the knockouts progress, losers go home for a few months rest. Sell the TV rights to any and all.
Have an open ballot/lottery each week to fly fans out to fill the stadiums. They get to enter the draw if they pay their taxes and avoid crime which would encourage good social engagement from rugby supporters as responsible citizens. The school kids get in the draw if they are applying themselves at school and reaching their potential.
Or maybe there is some magic way to prioritise both domestic rugby and international rugby by having the same players playing for 12 months of the year...
Go to commentsPerhaps he would have been better off going under the knife earlier, rather than travelling to Europe to hold tackle bags.
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