With as many as ten new faces blooded and 3-0 Test series win over Canada in the bag, Simon Middleton could not have asked for a much better autumn for England Women.
The head coach saw his side round of a whitewash over their North American opponents at Twickenham last weekend with a 69-19 victory.
Jess Breach ran in five tries – to add to the six she claimed on debut in the first Test of the series – while Abigail Dow claimed a hat-trick in a dominant win that followed the England men’s win over Samoa.
After a 79-5 win in the opener at Allianz Park and a 49-12 success at Twickenham Stoop, The Red Roses have now run in 32 tries across the three Tests and look to be in fine form heading into the 2018 Women’s Six Nations at the start of next year.
“We knew Canada would come out strong in the final game and I really wanted the team to put in a more complete performance,” said Middleton.
“We had a great start, maybe lost our way a little bit at the start of the second half, but overall we are absolutely thrilled with what the team delivered.”
Ten new players received their first caps for their country in the victories – Breach, Dow, Caity Mattinson, Ellie Kildunne, Zoe Harrison, Shaunagh Brown, Hannah Botterman Catherine O’Donnell, Jo Brown and Lagi Tuima.
“It’s been a great introduction to international rugby for the new players,” added Middleton.
“They have been outstanding. We have maximised the opportunity we had in this series and you can’t ask for more than that.”
The Red Roses this week confirmed their fixtures for the 2018 Championship as they start their campaign in Italy at the Stadio Mirabello in Reggio Emilia.
They will host Wales at the Twickenham Stoop and Ireland at the Ricoh Arena for their two home games while heading to Grenoble in France and Glasgow in Scotland.
Middleton added: “The Six Nations is one of the flagship competitions in the women’s game. It’s a highly competitive tournament and we always encounter a tough level of competition. It’s great to be back playing at the Stoop again and also getting back out on the road for our last fixture in the Ricoh Arena.
“While it was an incredible achievement to take home a Grand Slam Championship last year, going into 2018, that counts for nothing, this is a new squad and a new challenge and we are determined to go out and win the competition once again.”
