Preview: Scotland v Red Roses
Everything you need to know ahead of England Women's Six Nations clash with Scotland in Edinburgh.
England opened their 2024 Guinness Women's Six Nations account with a 0-48 victory over Italy in Parma, before hosting Wales at Bristol's Ashton Gate Stadium. Ellie Kildunne scored a brace for the second week running as the Red Roses finished the game 46-10 winners.
| When? | Saturday 13 April |
| Where? | Hive Stadium, Edinburgh |
| Kick off | 14:15 BST |
| Where can I watch? | BBC 1 |
- Sadia Kabeya's Six Nations Column | Fallow Week
- Red Roses team to face Scotland
- It Means Everything | Hannah Botterman
John Mitchell's side are back in action this weekend after the tournament's fallow week; they make their way to Edinburgh's Hive Stadium to face Scotland, who are on the search for their second win of the 2024 Championship after defeating Wales 18-20 in round one and falling to a 5-15 loss to France on home soil.
LAST TIME OUT
Marlie Packer’s hat-trick helped England on their way to a 58-7 win over Scotland in last year's Championship opener. All three of the flanker’s tries came within nine second half minutes and the Red Roses crossed 10 times in all at Kingston Park, with Claudia MacDonald and Amy Cokayne each scoring doubles.
Tatyana Heard, Poppy Cleall and Sadia Kabeya also went over to ensure the last match of Sarah Hunter’s illustrious career ended in victory.
VIEWS FROM CAMP
John Mitchell: "We've selected a strong squad. We want to raise our game and we want to raise a level in our performance. We felt we didn't finish the game as well as we could've against Wales so we want to take ownership of that as well and there is obviously lots of competition within the group for positions in the team.
"Cohesion in the back line is important, familiarisation and playing together I think gives them more confidence in each other and it does help with timing. It definitely gives us more flow and you can see more energy and connections."
Zoe Aldcroft: "Scotland have built some good momentum coming into this game, they had a good run from WXV into the Six Nations and we know a lot of their players because we play week in, week out with them in the league, so we have an idea of how they play and we've got our eyes on a couple players we're looking to target.
"Playing in a sold-out stadium is super exciting. We always want to play to a full crowd and Scotland have that for the first time at the Hive Stadium. It's special for Scotland but also for us to have the travelling England fans there too."
Rosie Galligan: "We're really excited heading into the next round. We're hoping that it's similar to what it was two years ago when the sun was shining and it was fantastic playing conditions. For us, we've had our fallow week and had a reset, so this week has all been about hitting the ground running and getting ready for the big game on Sunday.
"For us, we know Scotland are a fit team, they like to keep the ball in play for long periods of time and that's something that we're working on. We want to be the fittest team in the tournament so counteracting Scotland at the weekend is going to be huge for us."
PREVIOUS ENCOUNTERS
2023: Red Roses 58-7 Red Roses
2022: Scotland 5-57 Red Roses
2021: Red Roses 52-10 Scotland
2020: Scotland 0-53 Red Roses
2019: Red Roses 80-0 Scotland
2018: Scotland 8-43 Red Roses
STATS
England have won each of their last 25 Guinness Women's Six Nations matches against Scotland by an average margin of 46 points and have scored an average of 60 points per game across their last five encounters, while conceding a total of just 22 in return.
England have won each of their last 26 Guinness Women's Six Nations matches, the longest ever winning run by any side in the history of the men's or women's Championships - the Red Roses have scored 40+ points in 10 of their last 12 Championship games.
Scotland (1.65) and England (0.77) are the only two teams to have conceded fewer than two points per defensive 22m entry in the 2024 Guinness Women's Six Nations - England have also scored more points per attacking 22m.
Scotland have won two of their last three Guinness Women's Six Nations home games (L1) after winning just three in 31 previously (D1L27)
Scotland (91.3%) and England (90.8%) have the two highest tackle success rates of any sides in this year's Guinness Women's Six Nations, while England also have the highest tackle evasion rate of any team in the Championship (26.3%).
FIXTURES AND RESULTS
13 April: Scotland v England - Hive Stadium
20 April: England v Ireland - Twickenham Stadium - Tickets
27 April: France v England - Stade Chaban Delmas
Related topics
- Attack
- T - Tries
- M - Metres carried
- C - Carries
- DB - Defenders beaten
- CB - Clean breaks
- P - Passes
- O - Offloads
- TC - Turnovers conceded
- TA - Try assists
- PTS - Points
- Defence
- Tackles - Tackles
- MT - Missed tackles
- TW - Turnovers won
- Kicking
- K - Kicks in play
- C - Conversions
- PG - Penalty goals
- DG - Drop goals
- Set plays
- TW - Throws won
- LW - Lineouts won
- LS - Lineout steals
- Discipline
- PC - Penalties conceded
- RC - Red cards
- YC - Yellow cards
Red Roses overpower Scotland in Six Nations
The Red Roses ran in eight tries at a sold out Hive Stadium in Edinburgh to down Scotland 0-46.
The tries were scored by Amy Cokayne, Abby Dow, Ellie Kildunne (2), Sadia Kabeya, Jess Breach (2) and Marlie Packer with Scotland unable to get on the scoreboard. John Mitchell’s squad have now recorded 27 consecutive wins in the Six Nations.
England put the hosts under a lot of early pressure, as the forwards combined well with neat offloads out of contact to get over the gain line - but handling errors in wet and windy Edinburgh conditions hampered opportunities.
Away from Test rugby for 12 months, it took hooker Cokayne six minutes to have an impact on the match, by claiming the opening try. Taking a pass from scrum half Mo Hunt off a 10-metre ruck, she stepped inside and brushed off a Scottish defender en route to the whitewash.
The visitors capitalised on that momentum with another try five minutes later, where nearly every England player touched the ball - spreading it across the field and keeping it out of contact - Sadia Kabeya provided the final pass to unleash Dow into the corner who doubled the lead to 0-10.
Maud Muir had a try chalked off by referee Clara Munarini because of a dangerous ruck clear out one phase before the score, for which Cokayne was shown a yellow card.
Despite having 14 players on the pitch the Red Roses grew in confidence, as Aitchison dropped a well-weighted grubber kick in behind the Scot line, before centre Meg Jones showed fantastic skill and awareness to kick it in field, into the path of Kildunne, who scooped it up and rolled over the line. Fly-half Aitchison sent her first conversion of the match through the uprights for a 0-17 lead at the break.
The half time stats showed a dominant England display as they boasted 70% possession, beat 24 more defenders than their opponents, made 58 more carries and gained 207 more metres. The Match Centre highlighted Hannah Botterman as a standout performer with 10 carries and 49 metres to her name.
The bonus point was confirmed three minutes into the resumption, as a dominant English scrum pushed Scotland back to their try line, and Kabeya was on hand to dive over. Aitchison's extras opened up a 24-point advantage.
Breach bagged the fifth try, which came off the back of a strike move from a 22-metre scrum. It saw Dow come off her wing to receive the ball behind the dummy runs of Jones and Kildunne, before zipping a pass to the unmarked Breach who cantered into the corner to stretch the lead to 29 points.
Cokayne was shown her second yellow card on 54 minutes for a high tackle on opposite hooker Lana Skeldon, permanently removing her from the field, but it had little impact on England. A superb solo kick return from Breach on the hour mark saw her scythe through Scotland to dot down in the same corner she scored her first try in seven minutes prior.
Kildunne's second on 65 minutes was her sixth of the tournament, and squad captain Packer - on the field 10 minutes - claimed the eighth try, and Zoe Harrison's conversion rounded off a comprehensive 0-46 win.
Teams
Red Roses
15. Ellie Kildunne, 14. Abby Dow, 13. Megan Jones, 12. Tatyana Heard, 11. Jess Breach, 10. Holly Aitchison, 9. Natasha Hunt, 1. Hannah Botterman, 2. Amy Cokayne, 3. Maud Muir, 4. Rosie Galligan, 5. Abbie Ward, 6. Zoe Aldcroft - captain, 7. Sadia Kabeya, 8. Alex Matthews.
Replacements
16. Connie Powell, 17. Mackenzie Carson, 18. Kelsey Clifford, 19. Maddie Feaunati, 20. Marlie Packer, 21. Lucy Packer, 22. Zoe Harrison, 23. Sydney Gregson.
Scotland
15. Chloe Rollie, 14. Rhona Lloyd, 13. Emma Orr, 12. Meryl Smith, 11. Coreen Grant, 10 Helen Nelson, 9. Caity Mattinson, 1. Leah Bartlett, 2. Lana Skeldon, 3. Christine Belisle, 4. Emma Wassell, 5. Louise McMillan, 6. Rachel Malcolm - captain, 7. Alex Stewart, 8. Evie Gallagher.
Replacements
16. Elis Martin, 17. Molly Wright, 18. Elliann Clarke, 19. Fiona McIntosh, 20. Rachel McLachlan, 21. Mairi McDonald, 22. Lisa Thomson, 23. Francesca McGhie.
