The England women's rugby side, known as the Red Roses, unleashed a spectacular second‑half onslaught to clinch a 48‑15 win against the Australian Wallaroos in the opening match of the WXV Global Series at Salford's CorpAcq Stadium. While the first 40 minutes were dominated by the visitors, the home team turned the tide after the break, scoring seven tries and cementing their position as the world’s top‑ranked side.
In the opening exchanges, Australia took an early lead thanks to a penalty from Samantha Wood and a converted try by Faliki Pohiva, putting the hosts behind 10‑5 at the interval. The Red Roses were limited to a solitary short‑range effort from substitute prop Abi Burton, who crossed after Wood was sin‑binned for a deliberate knock‑on.
Holly Aitchison missed the subsequent conversion, leaving the score unchanged. The half‑time scoreboard was a historic moment for England: it marked the first time in seven years that the Red Roses trailed at the break, the previous occasion dating back to 2019. The early deficit, however, seemed to galvanise the English side.
After the restart, they quickly regained possession and, capitalising on the extra player advantage while Wood served her ten‑minute suspension, they built momentum. The breakthrough came when Sadia Kabeya sliced the ball back inside to Burton, who powered over for the first try of the half. The conversion was missed, but the momentum had shifted.
Australia responded with a try from Brittany Merlo, only to have it overturned after the video referee ruled a line‑out infringement. A few minutes later, the Wallaroos earned a legitimate try when Faliki Pohiva forced his way over following a well‑executed line‑out steal; Wood added the conversion, restoring the Australian lead to 10‑5. England’s defence held firm for the remainder of the first half, denying the Wallaroos any further points and sending the Red Roses into the dressing room determined to overturn the deficit. The second half began with a decisive line‑out maul that saw May Campbell dive over for a try, with Aitchison converting to give England a 12‑10 lead.
From that point the Red Roses entered a scoring frenzy. Within a ten‑minute window they crossed the try line four times.
On the 51st minute, captain Meg Jones finished a well‑placed kick from Aitchison. Four minutes later, debutante Bryony Field steered a powerful maul over.
Two minutes after that, winger Mia Venner sprinted into the corner to touch down. Finally, at the 61st minute, Kabeya powered under the posts for the fourth try of the burst. Zoe Harrison added the conversion for each of these scores, pushing the tally to 34‑10 with just under 20 minutes remaining.
Australia’s woes deepened when Eva Karpani was sin‑binned for an infringement during the build‑up to Venner's try. England continued to exploit the numerical advantage. Replacement No.7 Lucy Packer seized a turnover at the breakdown and sprinted over for another try, with Harrison again slotting the conversion to make it 41‑10. After serving her suspension, Karpani managed to cross for Australia, stemming the flow of points momentarily, but the English side were not finished.
Claudia Moloney‑MacDonald showcased her speed on the wing, diving over near the touchline, and Harrison completed the scoring with a precise touchline conversion, sealing the final score at 48‑15. The match statistics reflected England’s dominance in the second half: seven tries, a near‑perfect conversion rate, and a possession advantage after the 40‑minute mark. The Wallaroos, despite a spirited first half, were unable to recover from the relentless English attack and the discipline issues that saw two players temporarily dismissed. Post‑match, Abi Burton was named Player of the Match.
Speaking to BBC Sport, she reflected on the team's performance: "It was tough, they made us work for it. We knew we weren't at our best at half‑time, we needed to come out and bring it to them physically because they came out absolutely gunning. That cohesiveness started to click at the end.
There is so much more to come from this team, we've just got a few teething issues to sort out. It's going to take time for us to get back into it with a shorter pre‑season, but it's about how we adapt quickly and we’re ready for the next Test match. We're a different group of players in some aspects, but the messages have always been the same: be the best versions of ourselves and be as cohesive as possible.
It's an ever‑evolving Red Roses team." Looking ahead, England will travel to Exeter to face Canada on September 19 before taking on New Zealand at Twickenham's Allianz Stadium on September 26. The comprehensive victory over Australia serves as a strong statement of intent for the Red Roses as they aim to defend their world champion title and maintain their No.1 world ranking throughout the WXV Global Series.