Ellie Kildunn (center) had one of her best performances as a defender against Canada. Photo: Getty Images/Harry Trump
In a match that lacked oxygen and its modest live promotion, England quietly began to pave the way for a home World Cup two years later with a comprehensive victory over Canada at Sandy Park.
The 50-24 scoreline was somewhat flattering for England, who were guilty of sloppy turn-in and a lack of playfulness at times.
But they showed an exciting commitment to diversifying their attack and looked a shadow of a team that has been too much of a team in recent years. relied on his car hammer.
“Our forward play is still part of our DNA. We just want the game to be more balanced, to have a plan A and a plan B when needed,” said Louis Deacon, England's interim head coach, who admitted his side wanted to add extra elements to their game.< /p >
As the Red Roses perfect their preparations for WXV, a new global competition that starts next month, they learn there is life after their moving white rocket.
Embracing more unstructured play< p >At last year's World Cup in New Zealand, England crushed every team they played with their ferocious hammer. This was used to devastating effect, but by the time they faced New Zealand in the final, the Black Ferns had figured out England's basic method of attack and effectively neutralized it.
New Zealand are a team that thrives on this. the game was unstructured and the Red Roses were unable to match their unpredictability. If they are to win the World Cup in 2025, England will need more than just a hammer in their arsenal, and at Sandy Park we saw a team trying to diversify their attack.
Their mission is to play more unstructured play from the start and Helena Rowland's two tries were a reflection of England trying to integrate kicking more into their attack.
Holly Aitchison's cross-field strike set up Rowland's opening goal, while Meg Jones' build-up to outside center's second goal towards the end, aided by a stunning inside pass from Claudia McDonald, was a rare example of the Red Roses' hopes strike. Load up the ball more than the blood-thunder attack through the middle.
Maisie Allen diversifies England backline options
For a 15-minute period early in the second half, Canada successfully prevented England from extending their 31- 12. A noticeable drop in intensity was to be expected from the first blow after the Grand Slam success at the end of May, and Deacon subsequently confirmed that his side went into the clash «tired» due to the pressure of the week.
But if their match sharpness wasn't enough, the introduction of debutants Maisie Allen, Jones and MacDonald on the hour mark injected fresh energy into the Red Roses' attack. Jones and MacDonald were genuine leads when they came into action and were used to great effect in the wider channels, while Allen collapsed on debut.
A former England Under-20 captain, the Exeter Chiefs forward will only add competition to an already crowded back row currently missing Alex Matthews and Sadia Kabeya as England continue to adapt without Sarah Hunter.
Ellie Kildanne speaking at full-back< p>The Red Roses' best playmaker produced his best performance in an England shirt that day. Abbey Dow and Tatiana Heard fed off Kildunn's energy in attack, and her footwork on a couple of attempts was simply beautiful.
But what was most pleasing was Kildunn's ability in the contact zone. «She made a huge impression on me because that wasn't her strong suit before,» Deacon said. “She made some tackles too — won collisions — and had an outstanding game.”
what's next? Eliminate the nasty bits
As the women's game continues to straddle both the realms of professionalism and elitist amateurism — even when it comes to teams ranked first and fourth — context is important when assessing any performance by the Red Roses.
The English have been in camp since July and have had several weeks to prepare for this match. Canada, a country that rarely plays Tests, gathered at Sandy Park just last week. Their preparations were further disrupted when their hotel in Exeter was partially flooded by heavy rain shortly after their arrival.
That they scored four tries against England was a testament to the fact that they are extremely athletic despite that they made two attempts. from their attempts it was expected that they would be ready. They were given these opportunities due to the confusion in England at half-time, which allowed the game to become free-flowing. The two teams will meet again next Saturday at Stonex Stadium.
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