Katy Daley-McLean
Rugby World Cup columnist @katymc10
England’s last-gasp wins over France will potentially have created a ‘limiting belief’ that Red Roses are unbeatable; Wales will look to keep scoreline small against World Cup hosts New Zealand; England face France in Rugby World Cup in Whangarei on Saturday. Kick-off 8am
Last Updated: 13/10/22 2:05pm
England have a good recent record over France, winning their last 10 matches, but some of those fixtures have been very close and, at some point, you’ve got to think France will win a game. For England fans, the hope is they won’t make the breakthrough in this Saturday’s big World Cup clash.
Marlie Packer comes back into the side and the form she’s been in for England over the past six months has been incredible. It’s not just her rugby ability, it’s her leadership qualities – the competitive edge that she brings which inspires team-mates and intimidates the opposition.
The French side are consistently inconsistent, you never know when they might pull out a performance characterised by accuracy, intensity and sharp execution of set-piece, so someone like Marlie will be really important in ensuring that they are not allowed to get into the swing of their own processes.
England have certainly gained the mental edge through that run of beating France repeatedly and if you look at some of the ways they’ve recorded those wins you can also imagine the negative impact it may have had on the French mindset, potentially creating a ‘limiting belief’ that England are unbeatable.
I’m thinking back to November 2020 when Emily Scarratt kicked a penalty in the closing moments as England recovered from 15-5 and 23-22 behind to win 25-23 at Twickenham. Or a year before that, when Lydia Thompson scored late in the corner as England came back to beat France 17-15 at Sandy Park.
On both occasions, France had possession, should have held on for victory and would no doubt have been crushed by defeat. You can’t rule out seeing a French side who show up and run England close, but it will be interesting to see whether they can produce that challenge and if they have the result in sight – whether they can manage the game well enough to ensure the win.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Sarah Hunter says it’s ‘unbelievable’ to be spoken about in the same terms as former prop Rocky Clark. Hunter will join Clark on 137 caps this weekend against France but insists the focus is on the team rather than personal records
In recent times things haven’t quite gelled for France, they’ve got plenty of tremendous players but they’ve not yet found the style that sets that group apart. In terms of their World Cup pedigree, they’ve reached the semi-finals in seven out of eight editions but always fallen short.
In their opening win over South Africa last weekend, there were some really lovely moments, especially in the last 15/20 minutes of play. I think Caroline Drouin was brilliant at fly-half and was unlucky not to get player of the match. We know France are capable of being a really good side, it’s just they make too many errors in key moments and England will look to capitalise on those mistakes.
When I think back on the matches I played against them in France, they were by far my favourite fixtures. Crowds have massively improved over here now, but for years France was the most atmospheric place to play. Historically France haven’t travelled well, but maybe with a new coaching structure in place, and facing England on neutral ground will suit them. Saturday is sure to be the test of that.
What England will have worked on this week
England will be looking at their start this weekend and what they don’t want to do is to let France get into the game as we know they’re a side that thrives on confidence. England certainly don’t want to allow someone like Laure Sansus to get a couple of early tries, they need to assert their dominance early on and dictate the terms they want the game to be played on. No doubt they’ve spent a lot of time focusing on the execution of their set-piece as this can be such an asset for them in creating that authority.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
England head coach Simon Middleton claims Sarah Hunter is a model professional as the number eight gets set to claim her 137th cap for the Red Roses, equalling the legendary Rocky Clark
Lastly, I’m sure the coaches will want to improve England’s ruck speed for Saturday. Against Fiji last weekend, England didn’t operate with the quick ball that they’re used to, and it stifled their attack. Leanne Infante spent a lot of time digging against Fiji and allowed defences to set, but the defence England will face this weekend will be another level and they must improve in that area.
Second place up for grabs in Pool A
Wales will be full of confidence after their last-gasp win over Scotland, but New Zealand will be a different challenge altogether for them. Perhaps they will optimistically believe they can turn them over, but realistically the hosts will still be huge favourites in this game with some world-class players and a home crowd as well. Practically speaking, if Wales can keep the scoreline small, it ensures that they have a shot at getting out of the group even if they lose their next game to Australia.
Scotland will see their contest with Australia as their final chance to get out of Pool A. Although they didn’t come away with the result on Sunday, I really think that Scotland have a good group of players, a great team ethic and the potential to put together better performances. Australia will look to get a heavy win over their opponents after running out of steam against the Black Ferns in the latter stages of their opener.
New Zealand will top the pool, but that race for second and third place is really interesting and for me, Pool A is the most intriguing of the three groups.