England women's national rugby union team

The England women's national rugby union team, also known as the Red Roses, represents England in women's international rugby union. They compete in the annual Women's Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. England have won the championship on a total of 18 out of 27 occasions – winning the Grand Slam 16 times and the Triple Crown 22 times – making them the most successful side in the tournament's history. They won the Women's Rugby World Cup in 1994 and 2014, and have been runners-up on five other occasions. Their interim coach from May to October 2023 is Louis Deacon, after which John Mitchell will take over as permanent head coach.[1]

England
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)Red Roses
EmblemRed Rose
UnionRugby Football Union
Head coachLouis Deacon (interim) [a]
CaptainMarlie Packer
Most capsSarah Hunter (141)
Top scorerEmily Scarratt (749)
Top try scorerSue Day (61)
Home stadiumTwickenham
First colours
Second colours
World Rugby ranking
Current1 (as of 9 January 2023)
Highest1 (2012–2013, 2014–2015, 2017, 2020–)
Lowest4 (2015)
First international
 Wales 4–22 England 
(Pontypool, Wales; 5 April 1987)
Biggest win
 England 101–0 South Africa 
(London, England; 14 May 2005)
Biggest defeat
 New Zealand 67–0 England 
(Burnham, New Zealand; 13 August 1997)
World Cup
Appearances9 (First in 1991)
Best resultChampions, 1994, 2014

HistoryEdit

Until 2009 the badge and logo of England women's national teams was significantly different from that worn by men's teams. However, in 2009 in anticipation of the merger between the Rugby Football Union and Rugby Football Union for Women England teams adopted the men's rose.[citation needed]

England have taken part in every Women's Rugby World Cup competition, winning in 1994 and 2014 and finishing as runner-up on five other occasions.

The 1995/1996 season saw the introduction of a Home Nations Championship between England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, which England won in its inaugural year. England won the Championship every year, except for the 1997/98 season when it was won by Scotland.

France joined the competition in the 1998/99 season making it the Five Nations Championship, with England achieving the Grand Slam in three successive seasons.

In the 2001/02 season, Ireland rejoined the fold in preparation for the World Cup and the competition expanded to be known as the Six Nations. Since then England have finished lower than runner-up on only 2 occasions, in 2013 and 2015 respectively, and have won the title on 13 separate occasions. This includes 7 consecutive tournament triumphs between 2006 and 2012 and the Grand Slam on 11 more occasions, including 3 times in a row between 2006–2008 and 2010–2012, respectively.

RecordsEdit

Top 20 rankings as of 5 June 2023[2]
Rank Change* Team Points
1     England 094.55
2     New Zealand 093.19
3     France 089.62
4     Canada 084.67
5     Australia 078.00
6     Wales 077.00
7     United States 076.80
8     Italy 074.63
9     Scotland 071.19
10     Ireland 071.09
11     Japan 068.40
12     Spain 066.35
13     South Africa 066.15
14     Russia 061.10
15     Netherlands 060.02
16  2   Samoa 059.04
17     Hong Kong 058.31
18  1   Kazakhstan 057.54
19  3   Fiji 057.30
20     Sweden 056.01
*Change from the previous week

OverallEdit

Full internationals only

Correct as of 30 October 2022

Opponent First game Played Won Drawn Lost Win %
  Australia 1998 6 6 0 0 100.00%
  Canada 1993 32 28 1 3 87.50%
  Fiji 2022 1 1 0 0 100.00%
  France 1991 53 39 0 14 73.58%
  Germany 1997 1 1 0 0 100.00%
  Ireland 1996 28 26 0 2 92.86%
  Italy 1991 23 23 0 0 100.00%
  Kazakhstan 2000 3 3 0 0 100.00%
  Netherlands 1990 4 4 0 0 100.00%
  New Zealand 1997 29 10 1 18 34.48%
  Russia 1994 2 2 0 0 100.00%
  Samoa 2005 2 2 0 0 100.00%
  Scotland 1994 31 29 0 2 93.55%
  South Africa 2005 6 6 0 0 100.00%
  Spain 1991 16 14 1 1 87.50%
  Sweden 1988 3 3 0 0 100.00%
  United States 1991 21 20 0 1 95.00%
  Wales 1987 40 38 0 2 95.00%
Total 1987 301 255 3 43 84.62%

World CupEdit

Rugby World Cup
Year Round Pld W D L PF PA Squad
  1991 Runners-up 4 3 0 1 56 28 Squad
  1994 Champions 5 5 0 0 172 39 Squad
  1998 Third Place 5 4 0 1 219 78 Squad
  2002 Runners-up 4 3 0 1 138 37 Squad
  2006 Runners-up 5 4 0 1 146 47 Squad
  2010 Runners-up 5 4 0 1 171 23 Squad
  2014 Champions 5 4 1 0 184 37 Squad
  2017 Runners-up 5 4 0 1 211 88 Squad
  2021 Runners-up 6 5 0 1 270 84 Squad
  2025 Qualified
  2029 TBD
  2033
Total Champions 44 36 1 7 1487 451
  Champion   Runner-up   Third place   Fourth place
* Tied placing Best placing Home venue

Six NationsEdit

  England   France   Ireland   Italy   Scotland   Spain   Wales
Tournaments 27 24 25 16 27 7 27
Outright Wins 18 6 2 0 1 0 0
Grand Slams 16 5 1 0 1 0 0
Triple Crowns 22 2 1 1
Wooden Spoons 0 0 5 3 9 2 6

PlayersEdit

Current squadEdit

On 2 March 2023, England head coach Simon Middleton named a 42-player squad in preparation for the 2023 Women's Six Nations Championship.[3]

On 22 March 2023, prop Mackenzie Carson was confirmed as an additional member of England's Six Nations squad, after her application to transfer her national allegiance from Canada, under new World Rugby eligibility regulations, was approved.[4]

On 30 March 2023, lock Delaney Burns was called up to the England squad, ahead of their second round Six Nations fixture against Italy.[5]

Player Position Date of birth (age) Caps Franchise / province
May Campbell Hooker (1996-05-16) 16 May 1996 (age 27) 0 Saracens
Amy Cokayne Hooker (1996-07-11) 11 July 1996 (age 26) 70 Harlequins
Lark Davies Hooker (1995-03-03) 3 March 1995 (age 28) 44 Bristol Bears
Connie Powell Hooker (2000-07-13) 13 July 2000 (age 22) 7 Gloucester-Hartpury
Sarah Bern Prop (1997-07-10) 10 July 1997 (age 25) 52 Bristol Bears
Mackenzie Carson Prop 0 Saracens
Bryony Cleall Prop (1992-06-12) 12 June 1992 (age 30) 7 Harlequins
Kelsey Clifford Prop (2001-12-11) 11 December 2001 (age 21) 0 Saracens
Liz Crake Prop (1994-11-08) 8 November 1994 (age 28) 0 Wasps
Detysha Harper Prop (1998-10-23) 23 October 1998 (age 24) 5 Loughborough Lightning
Maud Muir Prop (2001-07-12) 12 July 2001 (age 21) 17 Gloucester-Hartpury
Hannah Sims Prop (1996-11-03) 3 November 1996 (age 26) 0 Harlequins
Zoe Aldcroft Lock (1996-11-19) 19 November 1996 (age 26) 38 Gloucester-Hartpury
Delaney Burns Lock (2001-11-29) 29 November 2001 (age 21) 0 Bristol Bears
Rosie Galligan Lock (1998-04-30) 30 April 1998 (age 25) 9 Harlequins
Cath O'Donnell Lock (1996-06-13) 13 June 1996 (age 26) 24 Loughborough Lightning
Morwenna Talling Lock (2002-08-05) 5 August 2002 (age 20) 5 Loughborough Lightning
Sarah Beckett Back row (1999-02-14) 14 February 1999 (age 24) 25 Gloucester-Hartpury
Poppy Cleall Back row (1992-06-12) 12 June 1992 (age 30) 63 Saracens
Sarah Hunter (cc) Back row (1985-09-19) 19 September 1985 (age 37) 140 Loughborough Lightning
Sadia Kabeya Back row (2002-02-22) 22 February 2002 (age 21) 8 Loughborough Lightning
Poppy Leitch Back row (1997-07-04) 4 July 1997 (age 25) 7 Exeter Chiefs
Alex Matthews Back row (1993-08-03) 3 August 1993 (age 29) 45 Gloucester-Hartpury
Marlie Packer (cc) Back row (1989-10-02) 2 October 1989 (age 33) 89 Saracens
Emily Robinson Back row (2000-06-22) 22 June 2000 (age 22) 0 Harlequins
Natasha Hunt Scrum-half (1989-03-21) 21 March 1989 (age 34) 60 Gloucester-Hartpury
Leanne Infante Scrum-half (1993-07-18) 18 July 1993 (age 29) 57 Saracens
Lucy Packer Scrum-half (2000-02-02) 2 February 2000 (age 23) 9 Harlequins
Ella Wyrwas Scrum-half (1999-03-07) 7 March 1999 (age 24) 0 Saracens
Lizzie Duffy Fly-half (2002-02-12) 12 February 2002 (age 21) 0 Sale Sharks
Helena Rowland Fly-half (1999-06-30) 30 June 1999 (age 23) 22 Loughborough Lightning
Nancy McGillivray Fly-half (2002-11-15) 15 November 2002 (age 20) 0 Exeter Chiefs
Holly Aitchison Centre (1997-02-21) 21 February 1997 (age 26) 15 Saracens
Tatyana Heard Centre (1995-01-14) 14 January 1995 (age 28) 9 Gloucester-Hartpury
Amber Reed Centre (1991-04-03) 3 April 1991 (age 32) 62 Bristol Bears
Lagi Tuima Centre (1998-06-16) 16 June 1998 (age 24) 12 Harlequins
Jess Breach Wing (1997-11-04) 4 November 1997 (age 25) 24 Saracens
Abby Dow Wing (1997-09-29) 29 September 1997 (age 25) 30 Harlequins
Claudia MacDonald Wing (1996-01-04) 4 January 1996 (age 27) 24 Exeter Chiefs
Ellie Rugman Wing (1993-06-14) 14 June 1993 (age 29) 0 Gloucester-Hartpury
Lydia Thompson Wing (1992-02-10) 10 February 1992 (age 31) 58 Worcester Warriors
Ellie Kildunne Fullback (1999-09-08) 8 September 1999 (age 23) 31 Harlequins
Sarah McKenna Fullback (1989-03-23) 23 March 1989 (age 34) 43 Saracens
Emma Sing Fullback (2001-03-11) 11 March 2001 (age 22) 2 Gloucester-Hartpury

Notable playersEdit

England have three former players who have been inducted into the World Rugby Hall of Fame:

Players Year inducted Refs
Carol Isherwood 2014 [6]
Gillian Burns 2014 [7]
Margaret Alphonsi 2016 [8]

HonoursEdit

Winners (2): 1994, 2014[9]
Runners-up (6): 1991, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2017, 2021
Winners (19): 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2017, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023
Grand Slam (17): 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2017, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023
Triple Crown (23): 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023
Winners (5): 1997, 2007, 2008, 2011, 2012
Runners-up (1): 2004

ReferencesEdit

  1. ^ Orchard, Sara (4 May 2023). "England: John Mitchell appointed women's head coach after Simon Middleton departure". BBC Sport. Retrieved 4 May 2023.
  2. ^ "Women's World Rankings". World Rugby. Retrieved 5 June 2023.
  3. ^ "Red Roses squad announced for 2023 TikTok Women's Six Nations". England Rugby. 2 March 2023. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  4. ^ "Women's Six Nations 2023: Ex-Canada prop Mackenzie Carson to start for England". BBC Sport. 22 March 2023. Retrieved 22 March 2023.
  5. ^ "Women's Six Nations 2023: Delaney Burns to make debut in new-look England pack". BBC Sport. 30 March 2023. Retrieved 30 March 2023.
  6. ^ "Carol Isherwood - World Rugby - Hall of Fame". www.world.rugby. Retrieved 29 June 2022.
  7. ^ "Gillian Burns - World Rugby - Hall of Fame". www.world.rugby. Retrieved 29 June 2022.
  8. ^ "Margaret Alphonsi - World Rugby - Hall of Fame". www.world.rugby. Retrieved 29 June 2022.
  9. ^ James Riach (17 August 2014). "England 21-9 Canada – Women's rugby World Cup match report". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
  1. ^ John Mitchell was appointed head coach on 4 May 2023 but will not take post until the conclusion of the 2023 Rugby World Cup in October.

External linksEdit