Published: 2025-04-19 18:57:29 | Views: 23
Key events
The point about naming teams internally in two-match blocks is interesting. Mitchell mentioned it after the opening win against Italy. “It reduces anxiety, creates clarity,” he said then.
Which makes sense. But do you also lose a bit of competition in training if players know places aren’t up for grabs that week?
Marlie Packer has a chat with the BBC now: “Just awesome. You can never take for granted playing in this Red Roses shirt. The calibre of players we’ve got coming through. Full credit to where the PWR is. You’ve got players not just on the bench, but training week in week out, not getting the opportunity … it just shows the depth of the squad at the moment.
Was there extra motivation for her today after losing the captaincy and a regular starting spot? “No, I don’t think so. You’ve got to enjoy the moment. If you try and overplay things, that’s where mistakes come in … it’s going out there and enjoying it … play every game like it’s your last game.
“We didn’t run [train] too much during the week with Zoe coming off … so the captaincy got passed back over to me. That’s a moment when you just smile inside.
“Every player in this squad is a natural leader. In everything we do. We want the best for the Red Roses. We’re striving to be the best all the time. I speak when I need to speak. It’s OK. I am enjoying where I am in the squad.
“The really good thing with Mitch is, he gave us the first two games, what the selection was, then he gave us the second two games. So I knew I wasn’t in those two middle games … because I knew I was going to be involved in this game, there was no: ‘Oh, am I going to get an opportunity, am I not going to get an opportunity?’ It was about getting the squad in the best possible place to play against Wales, to play against Ireland, and then when it’s my turn, I know the squad will help me get in the best possible place for that.
“You’ve got players who really look out for you and really care. That’s what it’s all about.”
“There were moments of world-class in that performance, and we’re really excited about it,” the captain Aldcroft tells the BBC. “We still know we’ve got so much to work on as well. We’re looking forward to going for one last week, and then putting some work into some areas we can improve on.
“I think our maul can be a lot better. And then our breakdown as well. We want to be ruthless in those kind of areas. It’s about tweaking little bits and being excellent in those areas.
“We know France are super, super-physical. We know they love a little offloading game. So hopefully [next week will be about] stopping them in those areas.”
“It’s exciting when you look at the skill we’ve got ... The competition is immense,” MacDonald continues. “People say we need to be beaten. We get beaten in training all the time. We beat each other up in training. We push each other to be better. It’s exciting to be out there, with the talent we’ve got, it’s amazing.”
“I think the best is always yet to come,” a beaming Claudia MacDonald tells the BBC. “I think we are proud of that performance. We’ll watch it back, we’ll have have fix-ups, we’ll be better next week. But yeah, I think it’s starting to come together. I think there’s so much talent on this team.
“I think we get judged harshly for how we play, but every time we play we put on such a good product, that we’re proud of.”
Selection problems for Mitchell, on the wing, for Le Crunch? “It’s always about playing this game. I’ve been out with England for a while. I’m just loving every second of being back. We’re just surrounded by so many talents, amazing, incredible, rugby players. It’s a privilege to put the shirt on. To be picked out today, player of the match? It makes me a bit emotional to be honest. But maybe I’m just soppy.”
Les jeux sont faits.
England expected to win. England won. But that was a fantastic display pretty much from start to finish, in contrast to a couple of the more stuttering efforts by John Mitchell’s side from the past several weeks. What impact might today have on World Cup selection?
We roll on to next week, and a Grand Slam decider against France at Twickenham …
And another for Dow! Sensational work from Kildunne again to feed her teammate. Dow arrows to the corner, shrugging off a couple of defenders again and (presumably) completing the scoring on a very satisfactory day for England. Aitchison misses the conversion.
A deliberate knock-on and that’s the end of Rollie’s afternoon.
77 min: Player of the match: Claudia MacDonald. An exceptional performance from the Exeter wing. Brilliant individually but as stated earlier, the team’s overall efficiency has created the opportunites for her.
What a score! Off the back of a defensive scrum, England spin the ball through several pairs of hands over to the right wing. The final pass is Kildunne to Dow, who has plenty to do: from long range, she builds up to top speed down the line, powerfully hands off two would-be tacklers, and jinks inside another … and finishes after a scintillating run! Fantastic stuff. For the first time this afternoon, Aitchison misses off the tee.
71 min: Again it’s Scotland who are making progress. The No 10 Helen Nelson channels her inner Brian O’Driscoll and chucks a pass to herself, due to a slight miscommunication in the back line. Scotland work through some more phases but England, eventually, win a scrum.
70 min: The confirmed attendance is 15,530. I reckon they’ve had value for money.
68 min: Defensive scrum for Scotland. Evie Gallagher makes a trademark bullocking run after collecting the ball off the deck. Scotland are making a few inroads now and as Sara Orchard points out, the second half taken in isolation is 7-7 at the moment, as we move towards the final 10 minutes.
66 min: Safe to say that the fluency of England’s first-half performance has faded somewhat. They have scored one exceptional try in the second half but Scotland have managed to force the floodgates partially shut.
62 min: Leicester-born Emily Scarratt is going to be next on to the park for England. It’s her 118th cap and she provokes a big roar from the crowd when she jogs on, replacing Megan Jones.
59 min: England’s Shekells, Feaunati, Aldcroft have all left the action. Morwenna Talling is on for Aldcroft while Alex Matthews, Natasha Hunt and Helena Rowland have all joined the fray. For Scotland McGhie, Young and Skeldon are off for Scott, Martin, Bartlett respectively.
The fans love it! Scotland have a try! It was a well-worked driving maul and England could not keep them out. Head coach Bryan Easson smiles while conferring with his staff up in the stand. Nelson converts.
58 min: Scotland, finally, are over the line! The referee goes upstairs, saying she has seen a clear grounding among the pile of bodies, but wants to check for a knock-on. On-field decision is try and it all looks OK to me …
56 min: But next week be damned, how many tries do England want here? For now there is some defending to do and they repel Scotland’s latest advances with the same enthusiasm they’ve brought to every facet of the game today.
55 min: Selection for next week’s Grand Slam decider against France is already shaping up to be fascinating. There have been countless top-draw performances from England, none more so than MacDonald, who has two tries.
54 min: May Campbell, Hannah Botterman and Maud Muir all come on for England as Mitchell freshens up his entire front row. The Bomb Squad.
I mentioned earlier that accuracy, fluency and execution will be England’s aim. That had it all. Sensational score finished by MacDonald and converted by Aitchison. Shekells makes the initial run, a pacy dart over halfway on the England right. The ball was recycled worked right to left. There are superb passes by Kildunne, Packer, Aitchison … and MacDonald scorches over the line down the left after the space is created for her expertly by teammates. Aitchison remains flawless off the tee. This is precisely the kind of form England are looking for in World Cup year …
49 min: Thomson appears to knock on with Scotland on the back foot, but the referee doesn’t object. England soon have a chance to counterattack and Shekells gets hands on the ball.
48 min: Rollie feeds McGhie on the left wing, a rare opportunity for Scotland, but she knocks on. A waste, especially in view of the scarcity of possession for the visitors.
45 min: Scrum for Scotland inside England’s half. A chance to trouble the scorers?
43 min: Fran McGhie, who was exceptional in the win over Wales last month, brings the ball back out of the Scottish 22 with a mazy run. She makes a few yards before being dragged down.
42 min: Sunshine now in Leicester. Kildunne pumps a kick downfield and Lisa Thomson fields it in the Scottish 22 and clears. Feaunati needs some treatment, looks like she’s taken a nasty knock to the face.
Here we go. Rearrange these two words into a well-known phrase: “Limitation” and “damage”.
“Scotland are defending well, especially close to the touch line, but England keep finding a way through,” emails Tim. “Similarly Scotland marking Kildunne just makes more space for other runners. I can’t see them coming back.”
Me neither!
Thoughts? You can email me.
Half-time reading from the Gallagher Premiership:
