Mitchell hands Sale Sharks wing Sophie Hopkins first Red Roses call-up for WXV Global Series

John Mitchell has included uncapped Sale Sharks wing Sophie Hopkins in his latest England Red Roses training squad, named ahead of the WXV Global Series campaign that begins in September.

Hopkins, a former England Under-20 international, spent last season with Lyon in France’s AXA Élite 1 while completing a placement year of her university degree. She is joined by five other uncapped players in the squad: forwards Bryony Field, Keevy Fitzpatrick, Hayley Jones, Sophie McQueen and Annabel Meta, as well as Carmela Morrall.

England open their WXV Global Series programme against New Zealand at Allianz Stadium on Saturday 26 September, a fixture for which more than 50,000 tickets have already been sold. The squad will also face Australia before travelling to Canada for matches in Toronto and Ottawa in October, and concluding the series against the USA Women’s Eagles at Sports Illustrated Stadium in New Jersey.

Mitchell has framed the series as an early audition for the 2029 Women’s Rugby World Cup in Australia. “It’s kind of like you’re auditioning for Australia in ‘29, because geographically we’re definitely going to be travelling some distance in this tournament,” he said earlier in August.

“I think in many ways we’re trying to mirror that and understand how important our connections are and play exciting rugby. We’re tweaking our game — evolving it. But it’s very clear. The girls [are] showing enthusiasm around building and developing their skillsets for our game. I want to see people compete. Because, ultimately, they’ll earn the trust when it comes to ‘29.”

The wider squad retains a core of experienced internationals, including Marlie Packer (116 caps), Amy Cokayne (94 caps), Natasha Hunt (89 caps), Sarah Bern (84 caps) and Alex Matthews (82 caps), alongside backs Zoe Harrison (70 caps), Jess Breach (57 caps) and Ellie Kildunne (62 caps).