Canada coach Rouet hails back-to-back England wins but warns 'a year too late' for World Cup

Canada women’s coach Kévin Rouet has described his side’s back-to-back victories over world champions England as a significant step forward for the programme — but one that arrived “a year too late” to shape their World Cup ambitions. The results, which included a 24-21 win in Toronto, a 31-22 victory in Ottawa, and a 26-26 draw in Exeter, ended England’s 39-match winning run and signalled Canada’s growing depth at the top level of the women’s game.

Rouet, characteristically restless, was in London just days after the Ottawa win to watch fly-half Claire Gallagher help Trailfinders Women fight back against Sale Sharks in the JAECOO PWR NextGen Cup semi-final, before flying to Georgia to support Canada’s men in their Nations Cup campaign. The schedule reflects a coach who sees no reason to pause.

“It is positive for our programme, just a year too late,” Rouet told RugbyPass. “Still, it is positive that we can win multiple games and we pushed through some new players to increase the depth of those who can compete against England, so all good and positive.”

The series against England was not Canada’s only business during the autumn window. They beat Scotland 64-26 in Edinburgh but suffered a 21-5 defeat to France in La Rochelle — a result Rouet’s side appeared to put behind them before returning home for the two England fixtures.

The draw in Exeter, where a late Shoshanah Seumanutafa try was not enough after Gallagher kicked the ball into touch on the final play, proved a useful foundation. “Even if people don’t care about the draw, the draw was something to build on,” Rouet said. “We didn’t win, but we were in the game. We didn’t manage the last 20 minutes well, so we could see that if we managed those minutes better, we could get a better result.”

By the time Canada hosted England in Ottawa, the emotional control that had eluded them in Exeter was evident. “In the second game we definitely knew we could do it, so we were more in control of our emotions and knew what we had to do,” Rouet said. “Against England, if you don’t win the scrum you have to win a lot of other aspects of the game and we didn’t let losing the scrum affect us.”

Attention now turns to the Pacific Four Series in spring 2027, where Canada will face New Zealand, Australia and the USA. They finished second in the most recent edition after losing at home to the Black Ferns. “We play New Zealand in our first game, and New Zealand are in good spirits,” Rouet said. “I’m amazed at what they do, and we have to be ready to improve.”