2026 WXV Global Series preview: Scotland

When the WXV Global Series fixtures were first being arranged, Scotland would have been delighted to secure fixtures versus Canada and New Zealand at home first up.

After all, those sides are lying number three and number two in the world ranking respectively at time of writing, will bring the crowds flocking to Hive Stadium in Edinburgh and Canada were last in Scotland in 2018 and the Black Ferns have never played in the country.

Both games will certainly be glamour days and big occasions for women’s rugby in Scotland that’s for sure, but fast forward a few months since the fixtures were made public and the Scots might fancy a slightly less taxing start to their five-game September and October schedule.

Including a pool loss to Canada and a quarter-final defeat by England at last year’s Women’s Rugby World Cup, world number seven side Scotland have only won one match in their last seven after a frustrating single-victory Guinness Women’s Six Nations campaign earlier in 2026.

A host of injuries played their part in the Women’s Six Nations, but despite that a number of other ingredients were missing from the side that had been at the Women’s Rugby World Cup a few months before, perhaps mainly doggedness, organisation and, most importantly, trust in the coach’s game plan.

Since then, head coach Sione Fukofuka has departed after just eight months in charge while his senior assistant coach Ioan Cunningham is also away and Claire Cruikshank, who was part of the coaching team during April and May, now has her hands full with other roles within Scottish Rugby.

Dave Butcher is the only coach left standing from that period and he is now interim head coach and is being supported by assistant coaches Chris Laidlaw, Tom Luke and Robbie Fergusson during this period.

The new Scotland era which began under Fukuoka and was set to run through to Women’s Rugby World Cup 2029 in Australia can all but be shelved.

A new era starts now and for Butcher and co the next two months – when Scotland play the Wallaroos once at home and then twice away to complete their series of WXV Global Series fixtures post-Canada and New Zealand – is the sole focus.

They cannot be looking any further ahead than that right now as five tough Test matches are about to come thick and fast from a squad slightly bruised by the Women’s Six Nations struggles and Fukofuka’s departure.

Recent form

As mentioned, it has been a tough period with just one win in seven Tests and one win in this calendar year to date away to Wales in round one of the Women’s Six Nations.

Things just didn’t seem to click during the Women’s Six Nations apart from in parts against Wales and in part against France when a four-try bonus point was secured, but this Scotland squad has not become a bad one overnight, far from it.

Two years ago after a win over Fiji they leaped up to a record high of number five in the world and last year at the Women’s Rugby World Cup they put in one of the best performances seen in recent times to get the better of Wales with a bonus point in the opening game of the Women’s Rugby World Cup pool stage.

A few weeks later the team also went toe-to-toe with Canada for a large chunk of the match before being eventually overpowered by the eventual Women’s Rugby World Cup runners-up.

This squad know that they have it in them – and have the quality within the playing group – to reach the heights that they showed in all of those instances once again – and what better time to do it than now.

Biggest Tests

All five games will be big tests for Scotland given how 2026 has been going so far and the calibre of opposition that they are going to be coming up against.

But, as a number of the players in the squad have said during recent press interviews – after the message was drummed into them by the interim head coach on the first day of training camp a few weeks back – “to be the best, you’ve got to play the best”.

Scotland are certainly looking forward to locking horns with Canada again on September 12 at the Hive after a good battle at the Women’s Rugby World Cup last year.

That game in Exeter ended 40-19 to Canada, but it was a close contest than that sounds and this will be the ninth time the countrys have met, Scotland having won the first one in 1994 in the Women’s Rugby World Cup at Meggetland in Edinburgh and Canada having won all seven since.

As an added aside, Dave Butcher was previously Canada’s forwards coach so he will be keen to pit his wits against old pal Kévin Rouet who is the Canada head coach.

Scotland and New Zealand have only ever met four times before at Test level with New Zealand winning all of them including matchups at the 1998, 2006 and 2021 Women’s Rugby World Cups.

The last game in the 2021 Women’s Rugby World Cup, played in 2022, took place in Whangarei and the Black Ferns won 57-0 so the clash on September 19 at the Hive could be the toughest of the lot this Autumn for the Scots.

Then comes three games versus ninth in the world Australia at the Hive on September 26 then in Sydney on October 17 and in Canberra on October 23.

Like New Zealand, Australia have never played a Test in Scotland with the four previous meetings of the sides having been in Amsterdam, Barcelona, Whangarei and Cape Town.

The first three of those were at Women’ Rugby World Cups in 1998, 2002 and 2021 with the last one the WXV 2 decider in 2024. Australia have won all four previous contests with the last two being tight affairs and no doubt still on the minds of the Scotland players still playing who were involved in them.

Star Players

Scotland will be delighted to have Evie Gallagher back to start at No.8. She missed the whole of the Women’s Six Nations through injury and boy did Scotland miss her. She carries hard in attack, is a defensive leader and never shirks a challenge and the team will need the Bristol Bear’s attitude and work rate in abundance in the next two months.

During the Women’s Rugby World Cup last year, Leia Brebner-Holden took the Scotland number nine jersey by the scruff of the neck and she has not let it go since. When she is at her quick passing, free flowing and generally nuisance causing best then Scotland are at their best. We did not see too much attacking fluidity from the Scots during the Women’s Six Nations, but hopefully having been working with Tom Luke and Robbie Fergusson, Brebner-Holden can get them stretching defences again.

One major plus point from the Women’s Six Nations was the return of Meryl Smith in the number 12 jersey after long term injury. When she is on her game the playmaker makes things look effortless and she also gives Scotland another kicking option alongside Helen Nelson at 10. She will relish playing some of the best teams in the world.

Rachel Malcolm, the talismanic skipper, is also back fit after missing the end of the Women’s Six Nations and the back-rower will, as always, lead by example.

Prediction

This new era – or mini new era during September and October let’s call it – promises to be fascinating, tough alright, but fascinating.

From where Scotland were at in terms of performance levels at the end of the Women’s Six Nations those are likely definitely going to rise under Butcher’s leadership. They will struggle to rise quickly enough to beat quality outfits like Canada and New Zealand during games one and two in the WXV Global Series, but if the Scots can put in good showings in those ones and lay a marker down then they will be targeting a home win over Australia in game three for sure.

If they can do that then they can target at least one away win down under in games four and five.

As always though, the next game is the most important and if Scotland can set out their standards and put in their best performance of 2026 to date in the opener versus Canada – even if they do not win – then they can build some momentum from there.

They are also desperate to rediscover the Scotland DNA and the Scotland way again that saw them build something quite special and got them some great results between 2023 and 2025.