England produced a commanding display at Twickenham to defeat Canada 33-13 and win the Women’s Rugby World Cup for a third time. In front of a record-breaking crowd of 81,885, the Red Roses overcame the shadow of two previous final defeats to New Zealand, extending their unbeaten streak to 33 matches.
Canada struck first through Asia Hogan-Rochester, but England quickly responded. Ellie Kildunne’s brilliant solo try set the tone, and hooker Amy Cokayne and flanker Alex Matthews added further scores to give John Mitchell’s side control of the final. Sophie de Goede converted a penalty for Canada, keeping them within striking distance, but England’s forwards dominated collisions and maintained territorial pressure.
In the second half, Abbie Ward crossed for England’s fourth try, while Hogan-Rochester notched her second for Canada. Yet Matthews’ second try from close range and England’s resolute defence sealed the win, leaving the Red Roses celebrating their first world title since 2014, again at the expense of Canada.
Canada arrived in London on the back of an impressive tournament, having defeated New Zealand in the semi-finals and coming close to meeting their $1 million fundraising goal to compete with the best-funded teams. They played some of the tournament’s most attractive rugby, but on the biggest stage, England’s power, precision, and composure proved decisive.
Line-ups
England: Kildunne; Dow, Jones, Heard, Breach; Harrison, Hunt; Botterman, Cokayne, Muir, Talling, Ward, Aldcroft (capt), Kabeya, Matthews. Replacements: Atkin-Davies, Clifford, Bern, Galligan, Feaunati, L Packer, Aitchison, Rowland.
Canada: Schell; Corrigan, Symonds, Tessier (capt), Hogan-Rochester; Perry, Pelletier; Hunt, Tuttosi, Menin, De Goede, O’Donnell, Crossley, Paquin, Forteza. Replacements: Boag, Kassil, Demerchant, Beukeboom, Royer, Senft, Apps, Seumenutafa.
Match officials
Referee: Hollie Davidson (Scotland) Assistant referees: Aimee Barrett-Theron (South Africa) and Clara Munarini (Italy) Television match official: Leo Colgan (Ireland)
English