Simon Middleton has caught us on the hop once more. We cannot have expected this line-up for the so-called ‘friendly’ in Lille on Friday evening: 15. Ellie Kildunne (Wasps, 14 caps) 14. Jess Breach (Harlequins, 18 caps) 13. Emily Scarratt (Loughborough Lightning, 95 caps) 12. Sarah McKenna (Saracens, 35 caps) 11. Abby Dow (Wasps, 17
Head coach Simon Middleton has named his England Women’s team for Friday evening’s Women’s Six Nations Exhibition match against France. The Red Roses take on Les Bleues (kick-off 2000 BST, live on BBC iPlayer) at Villeneuve d’Ascq, Lille in a re-run of last Saturday’s Six Nations final which the Red Roses edged 10-6. Captain Sarah
@brianmoore666 is sure Rose Bernadou’s reappearance at the end of the England-France final was a stretch of the laws too far (‘ah, a tactical injury to bring France’s best scrummager back on’). Hollie Davidson chatted to the French team doctor who assured her of the fairness of the substitution. Let us accept his word. That
A glance back and forwards at the 2021 version of ‘Rugby’s Greatest Championship’, as the Six Nations likes to call itself. Bill Sweeney, the RFU’s CEO, has given his views on its future. He is strangely half-hearted about it. ‘We need to be a little bit more innovative in our thinking…’ Why ‘a little bit’?
Ireland v Italy This really was a surprise. The Irish came out fighting and had three tries on the board before the Azzurre could put their house in order and score their first. It wasn’t a great game; far too many handling errors for comfort, and the Italians hardly got going. You have to wonder
England v France A totally gripping game between two of the finest sides on the planet. The only thing missing was a whirring scoreboard. Defenders stuck to their task heroically; inventive attackers had the greatest difficulty exploiting space. Everyone expected a tight game, few such a low-scoring one. A strong swirling breeze upset the kickers,
The Red Roses clinched their third consecutive Women’s Six Nations title after beating France Women 10-6 at The Stoop. Simon Middleton’s charges overcame Scotland and Italy earlier in the competition before registering a solitary try and penalty against Les Bleues at the home of Harlequins, their eighth successive win over France, and fourteenth without loss
It’s excellent news that Bristol Bears have appointed Dave Ward as their new head coach. He comes with vast experience with Quins, England and lately Ampthill. It’s a plus that he is a Bristol man himself. It’s very much end of the season with only one fixture still to play, so his eyes will be
Italy v Ireland; Scotland v Wales The clash of the two I’s in Dublin is hard to predict. Both sides have match-winners; both have shown flashes of outstanding form. Italy are full of confidence as they reach No 5 in world rankings, three places above the hosts. They may pay the penalty of surrendering home
Oh dear! The French selection looks the way every weak-kneed England fan must have feared, hideously strong. Romane Ménager returns at No 8 to nobody’s surprise. It’s when we spot the names Corson and Trémoulière hiding on the bench that we get an idea of the strength of the squad. Annick Hayraud has kept faith
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