‘Of all the clashes in the tournament, two stand out: New Zealand v England and Canada v France.
It’s England’s well-trumpeted aim to regain top place in the World Rankings (www.world.rugby/rankings/wru) which they held briefly in 2017. They have beaten the Black Ferns eight times, but only twice away from home (2001 and 2017).
Les Bleues lie a mere 0.13 points behind the Maple Leafs, so must be favoured to reverse those standings in San Diego. The greatest advantage is the regular exposure to international competition. When the Canadians came to the British Isles last November, they hadn’t performed as a test team for a whole year.
France’s major problem is getting used to appearing without the players now consigned to the Sevens programme. Their pack can look after itself perfectly well, but in the backs only a few names stand out as match-winners (and match-savers).
Of course, all five nations will be treating each fixture with equal seriousness. That’s where other issues come into play, such as recovery time and player-depth. All will have one gap in their sequence; perhaps the USA have the edge there since their bye comes slap in the middle. But they may well need rest and recuperation more than the others.
‘Player-depth’ brings us back to the question that refuses to go away, squad-size. France, Canada and New Zealand have 30 players on their strength, the hosts and England 28. That thirtieth player may not possess all the virtues of the best in the squad, but with four games following in such short order, extra available bodies can make a crucial difference.
And that goes for specialization in the different positions.
In the very first game Claudia Macdonald (England) was moved mid-game from scrum-half to left wing. She certainly has the pace for that position, but not the experience. Indeed she switched to rugby only at university level. She was already making her first start for her country, and had the pleasure of scoring her debut try – a remarkable combination.
The same goes for the flanker positions. England’s squad contains four players who have worn the No 6 shirt Sarah Hunter, Sarah Beckett, Jo Brown and Poppy Cleall), but only one the No 7 shirt, Marlie Packer. When she left the field against the Eagles, Beckett and Brown had to cover both sides of the scrum. Their talent is not in doubt; only their experience in that specialized position.
But if two extra bodies had been squeezed on to the plane, could these problems not have been avoided?
England’s long absentee-list (ten contracted players are missing) means that Simon Middleton is having to bed in a number of players who, just a few weeks ago, would not have expected to be taking part in this prestigious tournament.
Of the 23 in the USA match, nine had fewer than ten caps, two making their debut. Several of these are outstanding talents, likely to gain a hat-stand’s worth more caps. But the inexperience was visible in tiny details like line-out throws and support positions at the breakdown.
Of course the Black Ferns don’t have vast experience of international standards. But that doesn’t stop them beating all-comers. Only rarely could we glimpse signs of frailty and indecision against Canada, and the old hands are so all-seeing (Kendra Cocksedge above all) that it will take an almost faultless performance to beat them.
The Red Roses did just that in Rotorua two years ago. This was the starting XV:
15 Waterman
14 Thompson
13 Scarratt
12 Burford
11 Wilson
10 McLean
9 Hunt
1 Clark
2 Cokayne
3 Bern
4 Taylor
5 Scott A.
6 Matthews
7 Packer
8 Hunter (C)
Let’s hope it doesn’t take this degree of experience, talent and know-how to repeat the feat.
The next two bouts take place on Tuesday, 2 July
France v Canada
New Zealand v USA
England have a bye
It will be revealing to see the result of that second match-up. will the Black Ferns be satisfied with a 38-5 scoreline?
