Train like you have never won, play like you don’t know how to lose. That is the mantra scribbled on a whiteboard in the Red Roses camp this week as they prepare to take on Canada for the first time since defeating them in the 2025 Rugby World Cup final. The game at Sandy Park on Saturday will be a week shy of the year anniversary of the Twickenham showpiece in front of a record-breaking 81,885 supporters.
It is the fans that come to mind when players remember that day: the thousands waiting for both teams to get off of the buses, the noise in the stadium and the reality of a full Twickenham after months of speaking about what it might be like to play in front of that many people. The final pitted the underdogs, Canada, who had knocked out the defending champions New Zealand in the semi-final, against the huge favourites, England. Not only did the Red Roses have the home advantage but they were also unbeaten since the previous World Cup final in 2022.
Everyone now knows it was England who came out on top but, in the opening minutes of the game, Canada drew first blood. Asia Hogan-Rochester scored the opening try and the Red Roses’ final was really launched when Ellie Kildunne evaded several defenders to get England on the scoreboard. I remember scoring and looking down the field at my teammates.
It was the start of the match but it almost started the match again because Canada got the first try, so we were like ‘now we can start, now we are in it’. Just to hear the crowd’s buzz. It burst my eardrums straight away, suddenly we got this lift.” The noise of the crowd stunned the Canadian team too.
The scrum-half Olivia Apps, who came on in the second half, says: “Once the stadium is that full and that loud it is just a different noise, I don’t know how to explain it.” When the full-time whistle blew Apps adds that she was “shocked and heartbroken” and “sad to see how disappointed your teammates are and how much you know they put into it”. For the Saracens star there were two main areas where Canada lost the final: having fewer calm and composed players than England and the set piece. I think as Canadians we are very athletic, fierce and passionate but it’s about having the balance, control and calm mindset that I think we need to implement more into our training.” The player of the final was the England flanker Sadia Kabeya, who has a different take on where the game was lost for Canada.
The easiest way to do that is if you have a really fast breakdown. So our main thing was to have dominant collisions and to slow down that breakdown. Slowing down Canada’s attack also gave us more attacking ball because they would end up kicking it back to us or knocking on the ball because of our pressure.
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