Comment: ‘Ruthless’ Red Roses put Samoa to the sword in 14-try victory that ‘spoke volumes’ of the culture John Mitchell has instilled
Helena Rowland grabbed a record breaking 27-point haul for the Red Roses.
When England hired John Mitchell to coach their women’s team it was as much for the hard-nosed, competitive attitude he brought as anything else.
A team better resourced than any in the game have won only one World Cup since 1994 and that was 11 years ago. For a nation never off the podium and only once absent from the final, that is a modest return.
The powers that be searched for the missing ingredient and thought of Mitchell, a former All Black head coach with two spells of duty assisting the England men’s team also to his name.
They looked at how he had dealt with adversity in life, fighting off two attackers during a break-in at his Johannesburg home in 2010 in which he was stabbed twice.
Tough times in 1998
Perhaps they recalled his reaction to the heaviest defeat ever suffered by the Red Rose nation, a 76-0 loss to Australia in 1998 when he was part of Clive Woodward’s coaching ticket.
“For some of our guys, rugby is not quite their life,” he had said, the morning after the nightmare before in Brisbane. “To me, rugby is my life. My whole life is driven by a seven-day cycle, all based around the result. Win, and live it up for two days; lose, and die for two days.
“There are some young guys here who don’t know about respect. They just expect it because they’re now England players. It’s not like that. It’s got to be earned.”
That was what England invested in when they asked Mitchell to succeed Simon Middleton in 2023 and since then they have won all 29 of their matches.
While they have yet to achieve the ultimate goal under his stewardship they are trending in the right direction. On the face of it this latest win proved nothing, a 14-try shellacking of amateur opponents who crowd funded just to be able to get to the tournament.
But, actually, the ruthless way in which England put Samoa to the sword in Northampton spoke volumes of the culture Mitchell has instilled since taking office.
Because the result was never in question between sides with such differing resources it was all about frame of mind at Franklin’s Gardens. Could England keep their shape and focus for 80 minutes when the scoreboard was moving faster than the clock?
That is no easy feat when you know even you’re most ardent fans are willing the opposition to score in a game billed by Samoa coach Ramsey Tomokino as the “ultimate David and Goliath story”.
By the end we had the answer. The even spread of tries, seven in the first half, seven in the second, testified to England’s consistency across the piece. The contented look on the boss’s face put the seal on it.
“Really thrilled with that performance,” Mitchell said. “I just thought the girls’ energy was outstanding. They were very clinical at the start. They looked like a team that was very organised, fit, wanted to play for each other.
“You can get loose, can’t you, when the scoreboard builds. To their credit they stuck to process. That’s about making sure you’re consistent in this space and I think most of the time we were. Some players had some outstanding individual performances.”
It helped that Mitchell had changed all but two of his starting line-up from their opening win over the United States. There was a hunger born of opportunity to stake a claim to play in future matches of greater import.
We saw it in Meg Jones, continuing where she left off at the Stadium of Light, with another tone-setting display, including two tries in the first 16 minutes.
In the way Claudia Moloney-MacDonald threw herself into contact, attacking every chance she had, back in the team after the second of two career-threatening neck injuries left her fearing to even leave her house.
There was the determination shown by Maddie Feaunati to shine against the country of her father’s birth, capping an assured display at number eight by controlling a slippery ball at the base to score before half-time.
The world class finishing of hat-trick hero Jess Breach, claiming her 50th, 51st and 52nd tries on only her 49th appearance – eight years on from announcing herself on the international stage with six on her debut against Canada.
Nobody grabbed the opportunity more than Helena Rowland, marking her first start at 10 since the Six Nations with 27 points, breaking the individual record for a women’s World Cup game.
She scored a try and landed 11 of 14 conversion attempts from all points east and west. Fin Smith, the England men’s fly-half who plies his trade on this very ground, would have been thrilled with that.
Lioness support
Supporting from the stands was Chloe Kelly, heroine of England Lionesses’ recent Euro 25 football triumph. “I’m proud to be here to support these girls,” she said. “It’s been an incredible summer (for us) but this is who it’s about today, the girls on the pitch here.
“I’m excited for the whole journey of this World Cup. What we did in 2022 (winning the Euros) took our sport to incredible levels. These girls are doing incredible so far. I’m hoping they can bring it home for us all.”
The host nation will echo that. England are through to the quarter-finals and go home with their biggest ever World Cup win, even if Harmony Vatau’s penalty for Samoa brought the cheer of the day.
Tougher tests lie ahead, starting with Australia in Brighton next weekend, so judgement on Mitchell has to be reserved. He knows only a tournament win will suffice but, right now, the Kiwi and his Red Roses appear a good fit.
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