England U18 Women's teams to face France
The final England U18 Women’s squad of the U18 Women’s Six Nations Festival has been named, as James Cooper’s squad prepare to take on France in Colwyn Bay.
In what will be the side’s first 70-minute outing of the competition, Cooper and assistant coach Ollie Perry have readied their team for an encounter against their tournament rivals this Saturday (12:00 BST kick-off).
- Entry to Stadiwm CSM costs £11 for adults & £6 for concessions
- The match will be streamed live on England Rugby's YouTube channel
Head coach Cooper has named an unchanged starting XV that defeated Wales 26-14 on Tuesday, with all available players included in the 26-player squad. Emily Lunn and Solana Shaw de Leon miss out through injury.
Worcester centre Sarah Parry leads the side with Lucy Simpson of Gloucester-Hartpury the selected vice-captain. 10 England Rugby Centre of Excellence sites and 16 colleges are represented in the makeup of the England Rugby pathway squad to take on their French counterparts.
Across the tournament, Grace Banks (Sale Sharks), Tamsin Baynes (Loughborough Lightning), Aisha Jah (Loughborough Lightning), Solana Shaw de Leon (Harlequins) and Ellie Wilson (Gloucester-Hartpury) have achieved their first U18 caps. 21 players in total have picked up their first U18 Six Nations Festival appearances this term.
The England U18 Women boast an unbeaten record in this year’s meetings to date, defeating Wales, Ireland and Scotland as well as a 19-all tie with Italy on Match day 1.
The tournament serves as a crucial window for development for the England Rugby Women’s pathway, offering competitive and equal playing opportunities with four 35-minute fixtures across the first two match days and Saturday’s final 70-minute fixture on the concluding match day.
James Cooper commented: “It’s been a fantastic week of entertaining rugby where our players have been daring and adventurous in their approach to what has been a busy schedule.
“The group have had the opportunity to take on four of the five other nations thus far and, whilst picking up positive results, have learned a lot about their capabilities at Test level and what is required. We’re now ready for another demanding meeting this Saturday.
“Myself and Ollie have distributed the role captaincy throughout the squad, such is the level of leadership in the group and the coaches feel privileged to offer such valuable experiences to these members of the squad.”
Team to face France
Starting
15. Daisy Aspinall (Hartpury College, Gloucester-Hartpury, Stafford RUFC) *
14. Abigail Pritchard (Hartpury College, Gloucester-Hartpury, Medway Rugby Football Club) *
13. Sarah Parry (c) (Hereford College, Worcester, Worcester Warriors) *
12. Molly Bunker (Hartpury College, Harlequins, Portsmouth RFC) *
11. Grace Banks (Wigan and Leigh, Sale Sharks, Liverpool St Helens FC) *
10. Natalee Evans (Hereford College, Worcester, Flying Kukris Rugby Football Club) *
9. Evie Haskell (The Samworth Church Academy, Loughborough Lightning, Mansfield Rugby Club) *
1. Zara Green (Cardinal Newman, Harlequins, Lewes RFC) *
2. Lucy Simpson (vc) (Hartpury College, Gloucester-Hartpury, Rams RFC) *
3. Ruby Winstanley (The Farnborough Sixth Form, Harlequins, Guildfordians RFC) *
4. Tamsin Baynes (Loughborough College, Loughborough Lightning, Market Harborough RUFC) *
5. Kaya Acton (Bishop Burton, Yorkshire, Hull Ionians RFC) *
6. Ellie Wilson (Hartpury College, Gloucester-Hartpury, Gosford All Blacks RFC) *
7. Hayley Jones (Henley College, Thames Valley, Chippenham RFC) *
8. Haineala Lutui (RGS Worcester, Worcester, Worcester) *
Replacements
16. Heidi Pashaei Tarighoun (SGS Filton, Bristol Bears, North Bristol RFC) *
17. Bethan Candlin (Loughborough College, Yorkshire, Hull Ionians RUFC) *
18. Aisha Jah (West Notts Sixth Form, Loughborough Lightning, Mansfield Rugby Club) *
19. Gabriella Brown (Maidstone Grammar, Harlequins, Aylesford Bulls RFC) *
20. Jasmine Adonri (City of Oxford, Thames Valley, Medway Rugby Football Club) *
21. Iley Bailey (Henley College, Harlequins, Paderborn Pirates) *
22. Isabel van der Straaten (Mossbourne Community Academy, Saracens, Eton Manor RFC) *
23. Ashton Adcock (Loughborough College, Loughborough Lightning, Tamworth RUFC) *
24. Becca Jackson (Hartpury College, Gloucester-Hartpury, Guildfordians RFC) *
25. Jessica Doyle (Sacred Heart Sixth Form, North East and Cumbria, Tynedale Rugby Football Club) *
26. Joanne Vosakiwaiwai (City of Oxford, Thames Valley, Andover RFC) *
*denotes a player capped at U18 level for England
