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C. MacDonald (10', 33'), H. Botterman (22'), B. Field (54')
Tries
L. Gibson (6'), D. Menin (15', 40'), O. Apps (58')
Z. Harrison (22', 34', 55')
Conversions
de Goede (16', 40', 59')
This rematch a week shy of the World Cup anniversary didn’t confirm supremacy so much as expose edges. England Women, heavily rotated again, found they could still make dents but not control. Canada Women showed the scars from Twickenham have hardened them: they lived with England’s power, won key breakdowns and handled the big moments better either side of half-time. A draw felt right because both sides were exactly as good as their strengths and weaknesses allowed.
The numbers back the eye test. Canada carried more, broke more and stole more – 55% ball, seven clean breaks and a 5–1 edge in turnovers won – while England spent long spells without field position and had to tackle 151 times. England’s lineout held (13 from 15) and their close-range carrying still produced tries, but the scrum was no platform and the cohesion around 9–10 wasn’t there long enough to stretch Canada consistently.
Selection mattered. John Mitchell’s nine changes from Australia brought back Jess Breach and Alex Matthews, handed Bryony Field a first Test start and paired Lucy Packer with Zoe Harrison. There were flashes – Harrison’s tempo when England were on front foot, Ellie Kildunne’s counter-carrying and Megan Jones’ four offloads keeping phase play alive – but the shape frayed under pressure. England finished with only four clean breaks from 71 carries, which tells you where the traffic went.
CARRIES
CLEAN BREAKS
TACKLE
TACKLES MISSED
TURNOVERS WON
PENALTIES CONCEDED
POSSESSION
SCRUMS
LINEOUTS
Canada set the tone by striking early and striking back. Lizzie Gibson’s opener and DaLeaka Menin’s first close-range finish bookended England’s initial response from Claudia MacDonald. Every time England got their noses in front, Canada found a way to wipe it out. The critical punch, though, came either side of the break: Menin’s second try on the buzzer dragged it to 19-19 at half-time, and when Field’s 54th-minute finish restored the England lead, Olivia Apps hit back four minutes later and Sophie de Goede calmly nailed her third conversion. That composure – kick your goals, reset the scoreboard – underpinned the stalemate of the last quarter.
England’s four tries all came from exactly the part of their game that still hums. Hannah Botterman smashed over from short range, Field marked her first start with the same ruthless finish at the chalk, and MacDonald took both her chances when the shape did click. But the Red Roses didn’t build repeatable pressure. Canada’s jackal work kept England’s rucks slow, Packer’s service got ragged under traffic, and too often the carry after a gain-line win was static. When they did get multi-phase in the red zone late on, Canada choked it with two smart steals and a forced spill.
Canada will be happiest with their defensive detail and their edge threat. They missed only 11 tackles to England’s 21, and their scramble never panicked after line breaks. Out wide, Asia Hogan-Rochester did real damage: 12 carries for 124 metres and two clean breaks is a headache England never solved, and it was her work stretching the line that opened space for Apps’ equaliser. Up front, Menin’s brace underlines how comfortable they were going tight when they needed points, and a 6/6 scrum return kept England’s set-piece from dictating terms.
Was there a turn England will regret? Two, probably. Letting Canada score with the final act of the first half wiped out the best spell England had put together, and the immediate concession after Field’s try flattened the momentum just as the bench arrived. England then spent much of the last 20 minutes defending between their 10 and 22. With only six penalties conceded all day, there wasn’t a back-door route through the tee either.
Individuals carried weight on both sides. For England, Field justified her start with accuracy at the lineout and a scorer’s instinct, Botterman and Maud Muir worked hard round the corner, and Kildunne’s 13 carries were the only persistent spark from deep. Harrison’s 3/4 off the tee mattered when the tries were all tight. For Canada, de Goede’s dead-eye off the tee plus calm decision-making in contact stitched the performance together, while Menin’s carrying around the fringe and Apps’ management were the spine of their attack. The back row’s work at the breakdown – led by the collective more than any single poacher – changed the tempo of the game.
What does it say going forward? England’s unbeaten run survives, but the tape says their breakdown and edge defence need a tune-up before New Zealand in London next week; the Black Ferns will ask the same questions, only quicker. Canada leave Exeter with something more tangible than revenge: proof that their set-piece is stable enough and their defence accurate enough to live with the best over 80. They didn’t steal this; they earned parity by landing on the right sides of the game’s small moments. If England tidy their ruck security and sharpen the last pass, they win this sort of match. If Canada keep this balance between constraint and ambition, France will have their hands full.
