London (AFP) – England captain Zoe Aldcroft believes it is “our time now” as her side bid to end more than a decade of Women’s Rugby World Cup heartache in Saturday’s final against Canada. The Red Roses have long been the dominant force in the women’s game, with the semi-final win over France their 62nd victory in 63 matches. But for all that success, they haven’t won the World Cup since beating Canada in the 2014 final, with England runners-up to New Zealand in five of the last six editions.
Nevertheless, blindside flanker Aldcroft, a member of the England side that suffered an agonising 34-31 loss to New Zealand in the 2022 final in Auckland, told reporters on Thursday: “We have been working on this now for three years and it is our time now, we really feel like that.” A World Cup that has already achieved attendance records is poised for another, with Aldcroft set to lead the Red Roses out in front of a capacity crowd of around 82,000 at Twickenham, a new high water-mark for a women’s 15-a-side rugby match.
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But England coach John Mitchell, who has named an unchanged team for the final in London, said: “You’ve got to try not to make it any bigger than it is.” Mitchell, who joined the England women’s set-up after the 2022 final, added: “The thing is we started back in Chester in 2023 and now we have the opportunity to finish something.”
However, standing in top-ranked England’s way are world number two Canada, arguably the team of the tournament so far, with their superb 34-19 semi-final win over New Zealand ensuring the Black Ferns lost a World Cup match for the first time in 11 years. “They have been outstanding and played really great rugby, we respect them hugely,” said Mitchell, who has guided England to a record 32 successive wins.
“This is where it really matters. This is where I’ve got to find a solution and sell a solution to the girls to beat Canada. To me that’s the awesome part of the job.” Mitchell, a former coach of his native New Zealand’s men’s All Blacks, added: “They (Canada) definitely have strengths and they definitely present you opportunities. It’s up to us to exploit them. But we’re never going to be perfect. To win this tournament, you don’t have to be perfect.”
Aldcroft, asked what she admired about Canada’s game, replied: “I think kind of the amount they’ve improved and that their speed of ball is very quick. They’ve just been playing exciting rugby and we are just very excited to go on Saturday.”
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