England's Red Roses seek swift revenge against Canada after 41-match unbeaten run ends

England’s Red Roses will face Canada in a WXV Global Series decider on Friday determined to respond after their 41-match unbeaten run was ended by a 24-21 defeat at BMO Field in Toronto.

The loss — Canada’s first victory over England in that stretch — snapped a historic sequence and handed Kévin Rouet’s side a significant psychological win. But captain Meg Jones, speaking ahead of the rematch, was clear that the squad has processed the result and moved on.

“We’re very hungry and we want to keep hunting,” Jones said. “There are some people who haven’t lost in an England jersey, so it was good to recognise that. We’ve got a leadership group and we’ve had some good and honest conversations.”

The centre added that the defeat, while painful, offered a valuable opportunity against one of the world’s top sides. “We want to play the best teams. You want to see where your game needs adapting, where there’s maybe cracks and also put things into practice against the best teams. To have the opportunity to go back-to-back against them in Canada is amazing.”

Friday’s fixture is the third meeting between the sides in quick succession, following a 26-26 draw at Sandy Park in September and last week’s defeat in Toronto. England will be looking to level the series and reassert their status as Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 contenders.

Head coach John Mitchell has made four changes to his starting lineup, the most notable being the decision to drop full-back Ellie Kildunne to the bench. Mitchell was candid about the reasoning.

“It is undisputed she adds huge value. She’s going through a difficult period at the moment and it’s important for us to help her through that,” he said. “It’s also important to create competition and to recognise that you have to become more consistent, especially when you’re competing in the Red Roses.”

Mitchell also emphasised the broader squad-building context. “We’ve got to maximise our depth, we’re going to deal with the now and I’ve got some future in mind as well. We’re after consistency — we need to be consistent in our actions and that’s one of the things we’ve focused heavily on this week.”

Last week’s match in Toronto also made history off the pitch, with 18,621 spectators attending to set an attendance record for a standalone women’s rugby fixture in North America. Jones acknowledged the significance of that milestone. “The crowd at the first game was fantastic. That was huge for them and huge for the game as well. You’ve got to remember we’re here to develop the game regardless of what the outcome is.”

England and Canada are both set to compete at the Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025, making this series a meaningful dress rehearsal for what could be a tournament-defining rivalry.