England Women have been crowned as Women’s Rugby World Cup champions for the third time following a historic afternoon at Twickenham
England have won the Women’s Rugby World Cup after beating Canada 33-13 in a dramatic final on Saturday afternoon, sparking emotional scenes at Twickenham.
John Mitchell’s side came into the showpiece event having got past USA, Samoa and Australia in the group stage before thrashing Scotland in the quarter-final and edging past France in the semi-final.
Canada, who enjoyed a fine tournament themselves, were England’s final opponents but the Red Roses made light work of them, coming out comfortable winners in the end.
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Ellie Kildunne, Amy Cokayne, Alex Matthews (2) and Abbie Ward scored the tries for England, who were sensational on the day as head coach Mitchell got his tactics spot on.
Once the game ended and England were confirmed as world champions, tears were present on the faces of several players as they hugged each other and toasted a historic success.
Captain Zoe Aldcroft lifted the trophy in front of the 80,000 plus fans, with all members of the squad including backroom staff among those celebrating winning the World Cup.
The Red Roses were then seen taking in a trip round the pitch and applauding the home faithful for their support during the final, with some players pointing out their friends and loved ones in the stands.
Meanwhile, player of the match Sadia Kabeya cut an emotional figure post-match and delivered her reaction to the win. She told BBC Sport: “It’s amazing! Thank you to everyone who came out here today.
“It’s a pinch me moment. It’s been years and years in the making, I am so happy we could pull it off. All props to Canada they are a great side and they put up a great fight here today.”
England’s final try scorer Ward added: “Honestly as soon as the whistle went I just burst into tears. Its’ truly been such a special day. A sold-out crowd at Twickenham. It was electric, in front of friends, family, it’s amazing.
“The last final loss, that was then. This is a new team, this is a new chapter of women’s rugby. It wasn’t about righting wrongs. This is our little moment today. It’s about this, this team has been special, what we’ve done has been special. The support, the crowd, the friends and family involved, it’s been magical.”
Another try scorer Kildunne continued: “No pressure, we thrive in this. We have big players. People care, look at this one (Meg Jones) smashing them week in week out. Keep the cowboy hats coming! We’ll be drinking, dancing and celebrating as a group.”
That is a hint into what England’s World Cup celebrations could look like this evening, but the Red Roses will also host an event at Battersea Power Station in London, on Sunday at 2pm.