Two tries from the pacy Abbie Dow rescued England from the abyss in Auckland and propelled them into the women’s Rugby World Cup final next weekend. The Red Roses were required to dig deep against a fired-up, physical Canada side but survived the examination to claim their 30th successive Test victory and keep alive their hopes of a first world title since 2014.
Victory, though, was still up in the air deep into the final quarter as Canada’s amateurs momentarily threatened to pull off the upset of the tournament. When England conceded a third try, scored by replacement Tyson Beukeboom, the margin was a slender 23-19 and it required a 71st minute penalty from Emily Scarratt to settle fluttering English nerves.
The Red Roses also had good reason to thank Dow, who rescued her side from a tight spot in their own 22 with a match-turning intervention. Following a breakdown turnover, a jinking Claudia MacDonald made good initial ground before releasing Dow to burn off the cover from 65 metres out. Instead of potentially falling behind, England were suddenly 23-12 ahead and able to breath again.
At no stage, however, did Canada make life easy for their opponents. They were feisty and determined from the outset and England were grateful for the cushion of an early 12-0 lead with the wind behind them. First a scrum penalty set up an opportunity for a signature driven lineout, expertly finished by Marlie Packer, before a teasing diagonal run by Helena Rowland helped to put Dow over for her first score of the day in the right corner.
The Canadians, though, responded almost immediately with a kick and chase score finished by their long striding flanker Karen Paquin and also showed plenty of defensive enthusiasm. The England lock Abbie Ward was held up over the line when a try looked almost certain but it was the underdogs who, remarkably, enjoyed more territorial advantage in the opening 40 minutes.
It was no less than they deserved when a rumbling forward drive of their own put England under concerted pressure in their 22 to create space on the left for centre Alysha Corrigan to score. The outstanding skipper Sophie de Goede converted to level the scores at 12-12 and leave England with some serious problem solving to do.
A Scarratt penalty from in front of the posts just before the half-time siren did give England a slender interval lead but there had been only glimpses of their usual control and physical dominance. They have not spent much time on the back foot in recent years or at this tournament and it was not proving a comfortable experience.
The unfortunate loss of Rowland with an ankle injury four minutes after the restart also robbed them of their most creative running back. With Hannah Botterman and Lucy Packer having also pulled out on the eve of the game and Vickii Cornborough sin-binned in the third quarter, England seldom looked completely comfortable and Beukeboom’s 68th minute try threatened to yield a major surprise.
Scarratt’s third penalty, however, slowed Canada’s momentum and the Red Roses coolly saw out the closing minutes. They will now face either New Zealand or France in next Saturday’s final
Scorers:
England: Tries: M Packer, Dow 2. Con: Scarratt. Pens: Scarratt 3.
Canada: Tries: Paquin, Corrigan, Beukeboom. Cons: De Goede 2.
