This is the 23 John Mitchell has summoned for the third and last round of the preliminaries:
15 KILDUNNE 14 DOW 13 JONES 12 HEARD 11 BREACH 10 HARRISON 9 HUNT 1 BOTTERMAN 2 COKAYNE 3 MUIR 4 GALLIGAN 5 WARD 6 TALLING 7 KABEYA 8 MATTHEWS (captain)
16 ATKIN-DAVIES 17 CLIFFORD 18 BERN 19 IVES CAMPION 20 FEAUNATI 21 L. PACKER 22 AITCHISON 23 ROWLAND
it’s basically “All change, please!”, as only Meg Jones and Rosie Galligan retain their starting places. This ensures everyone gets her go, as promised. England’s schedule was always weighted this way.
Impatient fans are most concerned about fitness. As expected, the captain sits this one out. We wait anxiously to see how long this loss will last.
It means Alex Matthews resumes captaincy, another tribute to her ongoing qualities.
On the plus side, Holly Aitchison is back, though she is kept waiting on the bench, to adjust to the 100 mph-style of play expected of her.
Quite apart from the skipper’s absence, I still do not believe this 23 represents Mitchell’s ideal team. We shall see.
The match marks Jess Breach’s 50th cap. How appropriate it takes place in her native county. One stat I haven’t spotted from the gurus: how many players have chalked up 50 tries before their 50th cap? An astonishing achievement.
I recall taking a long-distance snap of her, the only player in shot as she scored yet another Premier 15’s try in total isolation. A typical gallop from the far end of the ground.
This time she’s less likely to repeat the six tries she scored on debut against Canada. That made eleven in her first two appearances; and she’d scored four the previous weekend for Quins. I was lucky enough to see them all.
The other side of the fence
The Wallaroos have two aims in mind: to win the match but; far more urgent, to ensure they qualify for the quarter-finals. The second is far more likely than the first.
The Venue
The Red Roses make a very rare visit to the south coast. While the south-east of England is widely seen as the most pampered corner of the nation, it is sadly lacking in major rugby grounds outside London.
Fans have plenty of attractions to visit in town before they trek to the sunny uplands of the South Downs.
For the record, these are the missing squad members:
CARSON, CAMPBELL, ALDCROFT, M. PACKER, SHEKELLS, SING, MOLONEY-MACDONALD and SCARRATT.
Only three World Players of the Year there.
Details:
Saturday 6 September
KO: 17.00 BST
Venue: Brighton and Hove Albion Stadium (another very temporary title)
