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The unmistakable earworm of Dappy’s 2011 hit No Regrets boomed out of the speakers as England stepped on to the turf to train at Twickenham on the eve of Saturday’s Rugby World Cup final. It’s fair to say, though, that the Red Roses do have a few regrets, six of them stemming from World Cup final losses.
The most recent was three years ago when they fell to defeat at the hands of New Zealand at Eden Park. This time they are hosting the final against Canada at their own iconic stadium and the question remains: can they finally do away with their World Cup demons or will they once again crumble on the biggest stage?
England need to slow Canada down and get into the fight at the breakdown, while also maximising unpredictability on the attack. On the flip side, the world’s second-ranked side will have to maintain the pace in their game which overwhelmed the defending champions, New Zealand, last weekend, while also stopping the Red Rose players who can create something from nothing like Meg Jones and Ellie Kildunne.
While the winner is difficult to predict, what is a given is that the occasion itself is going to be record-breaking. The England hooker Amy Cokayne, who scored a hat-trick in the 2022 final, cannot wait to play in front of 82,000: “For me, more the merrier. I think the bigger crowds we have had, that is when the big players stand up and we are a team full of big players. I have no doubt we will rise to the occasion.”
One of those big players in the England team is the incumbent world player of the year, Kildunne, without a doubt the fans’ favourite. Every time she touches a ball during this tournament and beyond the stadium comes to life and fans were rapturous for her two brilliant solo efforts in the semi-final against France.
The England head coach, John Mitchell, has heaped praise on the star full-back in the buildup to the final, saying: “Ellie is firstly a very humble young woman, very gifted athlete. She is very intuitive in the way that she plays. You’ve got to be careful how much structure you give her. It’s very much about what she sees in front of her.
“She also works really hard at her game. She’s a breath of fresh air off the field because I think she feels that she can be authentic in our environment, which is important to her because little things like photography and podcasting give her energy. She’s a very creative person.
“She’s got the challenge of being a phenomenal player and everyone wanting a piece of her and a commercial piece of her. So she’s got some challenges to deal with. I just hope the people that are managing her manage her well going forward because she’s still got a lot more left in her yet.”
Mitchell also spoke about wanting this Red Roses side to fulfil their potential and become a “great” team. When asked if they would not be a great team if they lost, he responded: “They’ll still have to go and earn that, won’t they? You just never know when you can be defined. If you set a ceiling on the weekend, then that’s probably dangerous material.
“If we get it done, we can still be even better. I just don’t know when it’s ever finite, to be totally fair with this team. If we don’t get it done, it won’t stop this team from growing. If we do get it done, it won’t stop this team from growing. There’s so much talent in this team, but ultimately it’d be nice for this team to be able to fulfil their potential and be rewarded for the effort that they’ve put in over a long period of time.”
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Canada will be trying to fulfil their own potential having lost – to England – on their only previous final appearance in 2014. That end has been helped with their longer preparation pre-tournament following a concerted fundraising effort called Mission: Win Rugby World Cup 2025.
While Canada did crowdfund to fill a million-dollar gap, they are a semi-professional team subsidised by their federation and a lot of their players are fully professional, being contracted to Premiership Women’s Rugby clubs. Canada also have equal pay to their men’s team but England have a fully professional setup for the women’s side. England’s resources and home advantage mean they remain favourites but Canada are far from underdogs.
What Kévin Rouet’s side have already won is the coin toss which meant they got to select which changing room they wanted. They have chosen the home facilities, meaning England will be in the away one. But when asked if the decision was made with any mind games in play, Rouet said: “I just wanted the big one, I don’t know. We said that the red was important to us also, so it was good for us. If you win the coin toss, you get the big changing room. There is no big thinking past that.”
The final is set to be a thriller with the world’s two leading sides gunning for the trophy. But, and this is a cliche but forgive this onehowever cliched this may sound, no matter who wins on Saturday the real champion is women’s rugby. England 2025 has marked a turning point for the sport in the past six weeks, and there will be no going back.
