England’s women rugby team beat Australia 48:15 after trailing at halftime
England’s women’s rugby team defeated Australia 48:15 in the opening match of the WXV Global Series in Salford, England. Australia led 10:5 at halftime, but the English side came back and scored eight tries in total, ABC News Australia reports.
Australia led after the first half
Australia deservedly went into the break in front, controlling the contest at the contact points and defending reliably. The team spent 10 minutes down a player after halfback Samantha Wood was sent off for deliberately playing the ball forward with her hand.
Prop Faliki Pohiva scored a try before the break. It was preceded by Mikaela Leonard intercepting the ball in a lineout near England’s five-metre line.
Australia captain Siokapesi Palu Sekona said the final score did not reflect her team’s performance. According to her, England had trailed at halftime for the first time since 2019, and Australia need to maintain that level of play for all 80 minutes.
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England scored seven tries after the break
In the second half, the team coached by John Mitchell turned the match around. Tries were scored by May Campbell, captain Meg Jones, Bryony Field, Mia Venner and Sadia Kabeya. Abi Burton, who was named player of the match, scored in the first half, while Lucy Packer and Claudia Moloney-MacDonald also later scored tries.
The English team were playing their first match since winning the European Grand Slam in May and initially adjusted to an experimental smaller size 4.5 ball. Before this match, the team had a run of 38 wins. Late in the game, Asoiva Karpani scored Australia’s second try.
Next weekend, Australia will play France in Marseille. Lily Bone did not pass a head injury assessment, while the condition of Palu Sekona due to a knee injury and debutant Amelia Whitaker after the injuries she sustained will continue to be assessed.
