England fields identical squad for Women's Rugby World Cup debut against the United States
Record-Breaking Women's Rugby World Cup Opener: England vs USA
The Women's Rugby World Cup is set to kick off with a bang, as England takes on the United States in front of a record crowd at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland. The match, scheduled for the opening day, promises to be an exciting encounter between two formidable teams.
The US team, coached by Sione Fukofuka, has named their squad, with four World Cup debutants in the starting lineup. Captain Kate Zachary, a back-row forward from London club Ealing, leads the 10th-ranked Eagles at her third World Cup. The team has been building nicely into the tournament and is eager to start their campaign.
On the other side, England, the favourites for the event, have lost only once in their past 58 matches, a defeat by New Zealand in the Covid-delayed 2022 World Cup final. The team, led by Zoe Aldcroft from blindside flanker, is poised to field a dynamic back three, with Ellie Kildunne at full-back.
The starting lineups for both teams have been announced. For England, Jess Breach and Abby Dow are the wingers, Meg Jones and Tatyana Heard are in the centres, and Natasha Hunt and Zoe Harrison are the half-backs. The front row consists of Hannah Botterman, Amy Cokayne, and Maud Muir. Alex Matthews and Sadia Kabeya are the No 8 and openside respectively.
The United States, with four World Cup debutants in their starting lineup, have a possible seven others off the bench who have not played in a World Cup before. The team wants to embrace the occasion while understanding they have to earn the right to progress through the pool stage.
In spite of England's six successive Six Nations Grand Slams, they have lost five of the last six World Cup finals to New Zealand. The US coach states their focus for the first match is on executing their game plan to put pressure on England.
Pool A, which features England and the United States, also includes Australia and Samoa, who meet on Saturday. The top two in each of the four groups go through to the quarter-finals. England's women's rugby team defeated France 40-6 in a warm-up fixture earlier this month.
The match will be a historic one, as it will be played in front of a record crowd for an opening game of a Women's Rugby World Cup. The pool matches are being spread around England rather than just taken to traditional rugby heartlands.
England's Marlie Packer is not included in the matchday 23, and Emily Scarratt is poised to win her 119th cap off the bench. The Women's Rugby World Cup is set to showcase some of the best women's rugby talent from around the world, and this opening match promises to be a thrilling start to the tournament.
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