England’s Coach Sarah Hunter Sees 'Areas for Improvement' Ahead of England's Women’s Rugby Clash
By Priscilla Jepchumba
Ahead of the game against the world champion Black Ferns at Twickenham on Saturday, England’s defense coach Sarah Hunter acknowledged that there were always areas to improve upon.
Over the weekend at Kingsholm, the Red Roses scored six tries against the French side and secured a 38-19 victory. Captain Marlie Packer and winger Jess Breach, both Worcester Warriors women’s rugby team teammates, scored twice.
This win extended England’s winning streak to 14 games and their undefeated run in this fixture to 16 games. The Red Roses' last loss was against New Zealand in the Women’s Rugby World Cup final in July 2022. Hunter also acknowledged the team's challenges despite their success.
With exactly one year until the start of the Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 in Sunderland, the host nation is optimistic about what promises to be an extraordinary and spirited showcase of women’s rugby.
Hunter, the most capped England player ever, was pleased that the team addressed the scrum and maul issues in the second half in Gloucester. However, they are aware that they are still striving to strike a balance between being a potent attacking force and maintaining a solid defensive formation.
“I think every game you do want to see an improvement, and we’ve got things to tidy up,” said Huter.
“Yes, we had ambition to play, and that’s what we want to be. We want to attack teams and we want to go for it. But [we need to work out] how we maybe be a bit more controlled in that, make less errors, how we can ramp pressure up on the opposition defensively as well.
“So, I think that would be success. How we actually keep building our performances and keep taking things that we’ve been working on in training and pre-season into each game.
“Yes, we won against France, but it certainly wasn’t a polished performance and we’ve got areas to work on. So, from that sense of things like yes, you always want to win, but we also want to see the performance in the key areas that we’ve identified that could do with a bit more finesse.”
England has started their WXV 1 preparation with a 38-19 victory against France. This win marks their 14th successive victory against France in front of 7,590 fans at Kingsholm.
The only loss the Red Roses have suffered in their last 47 matches was against the Black Ferns in the World Cup final two years ago.
Head coach Hunter expressed confidence in the team, stating they have a winning mentality and a strong training environment that allows them to learn and improve from different scenarios.
She highlighted the importance of training intensity in creating learning moments and also emphasized the value of spotlighting and improving upon specific game moments to aid their journey to a successful home tournament next year.
England's coaching staff were pleased with Morwenna Talling's performance in the recent match against France. They praised her hard work and dedication despite past injuries.
Talling, at just 22 years old, shows great potential for improvement. While the team prepares for the WXV 1 title defense in Canada, head coach Simon Middleton will not travel with the team due to the imminent birth of her child. However, she plans to return for next year's World Cup with the support of the RFU.
JUDY ROTICH