The world of rugby has been thrown in turmoil by the spread of Covid-19, like every other aspect of human life.
Unlike the men’s equivalent, the Women’s 6N has never failed to take place as scheduled – till 2020. Now we must imagine games being reallocated to a distant date, possibly in the autumn. Of course this dilutes the sense of competition and drama.
Staff and players have had to carry on as normal; preparing for an international match these days is no straightforward matter. But as of Wednesday 13.oo hours, the current state of play (or rather, non-play) shows very different approaches.
The Ireland-Italy game has been called off. No news yet from the Scottish camp
Wales have already published their full squad of 23 to face England away:
15 Kayleigh Powell
14 Lisa Neumann
13 Hannah Jones
12 Kerin Lake
11 Caitlin Lewis
10 Robyn Wilkins
9 Keira Bevan
1 Gwenllian Pyrs
2 Kelsey Jones
3 Cerys Hale
4 Georgia Evans
5 Natalia John
6 Alisha Butchers
7 Bethan Lewis
8 Siwan Lillicrap (captain)
Bench:
16 Molly Kelly
17 Cara Hope
18 Ruth Lewis
19 Gwen Crabb
20 Robyn Lock
21 Ffion Lewis
22 Hannah Bluck
23 Lauren Smyth
– whereas France and England haven’t got beyond nuch larger training squads, les Bleues 27 and the Red Roses a colossal 33.
The surprise news for England fans is the inclusion of two uncapped Gloucester-Hartpury players, Ellie Underwood (right-winger) and Mia Venner (full-back). Underwood has been added to a training list before, without going ahead to be capped. The 17-year-old Venner is another very young addition from the junior ranks – along with Morwenna Talling – to get tangible evidence that the management are seriously impressed with her form.
