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RWC 2025: What we learned from the opening weekend
Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 is a go!
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From the fireworks that greeted Anne-Marie in Sunderland to Amalia Argudo’s timed-out conversion attempt in York two days later, it has been a thrilling opening weekend.
Tens of thousands of fans through the turnstiles, 481 points on the board and already more than one contender for try of the tournament.
This is what we learned from round one in England.
Favourites overcome opening nerves
Pressure can do strange things to rugby players. Especially when you have been working towards a common goal for three long years.
England, Canada and New Zealand took their place at the head of the field as the World Cup start gun sounded. France only slightly behind that trio but comfortably ahead of the chasing pack.
Yet all the top four needed time to find their feet on the World Cup stage as the record-breaking tournament got underway in style this weekend.
First-night nerves were probably to be expected for the Red Roses given they have played one meaningful match since the Women’s Six Nations ended in April.
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Add a night kick-off, Anne-Marie medley, fireworks and packed Stadium of Light into the mix and they can be cut some slack for needing half an hour – and a USA yellow card – to find their form.
Both Canada and New Zealand struggled to impose themselves on dogged opponents in York, 24 hours apart, before putting their foot down in the second half. Albeit the defending champion Black Ferns were unable to match the top two in the world in terms of tries scored, managing eight as opposed to 11.
France didn’t cut loose against Italy in Exeter and were the only one of the big four to fail to register a try bonus point in round one. They did restrict the Azzurre to nil points, however.
Tougher tests await for all four, but in the end it was an impressive start.
Sevens stars shine
If anyone had any doubts about the importance of sevens as a development tool for the women’s game then they should just look at the World Cup’s opening round.
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England’s 11-try opening night victory owed much to two players – Meg Jones and Ellie Kildunne – who have excelled in the shorter format. A third Olympian, Mo Hunt, kept things ticking over from scrum-half.
Not to be outdone the world’s second-best team, Canada matched the Red Roses’ try haul in York on Saturday. And they did so with a team crammed full of players who carried their nation to silver at Paris 2024.
Caroline Crossley was a nuisance in the back row. Taylor Perry knitted everything together at fly-half, enabling Florence Symonds, Fancy Bermudez and Alysha Corrigan outside her to showcase their dazzling footwork.
Later on Saturday, in Exeter, Joanna Grisez scored France’s first try of the tournament and it was a theme that continued on Sunday. Dannah O’Brien was the only member of the Ireland backline in Northampton who hadn’t spent time on the circuit.
South Africa’s Nadine Roos also shone at Franklin’s Gardens and there was a breakout performance from the young phenom that is Jorja Miller in York.
While her side toiled in the opening exchanges at York Community Stadium, Miller dazzled. The 21-year-old cutting through and around Spanish tacklers almost at will.
It’s not (only) the winning…
The opening weekend wasn’t all about the big guns, however.
Few people would have expected Australia to finish the weekend as the World Cup’s top scorers, national records tumbling like confetti as they powered to a 73-0 defeat of Samoa in Manchester.
The Springbok Women joined the party on Sunday, running in 10 tries to beat debutants Brazil 66-6 and underline the progress the team has made since the last tournament in New Zealand.
Yet even in defeat there were reasons for celebration within the Brazil camp. The sight of Raquel Kochhann, a cancer survivor and another player with a sevens pedigree, kicking the Yaras’ first ever World Cup points will live long in the memory.
As will the celebrations in York the previous day as Fiji scored an early contender for try of the tournament, or the emotional scenes on the same pitch as Spain had the final say against New Zealand – even if Argudo was timed out as she attempted to add the extras.
Of course, no one wants to see huge blowout scores but the opening weekend provided plenty of proof that for many getting to the start line of this expanded World Cup is something worth celebrating.
Tournament celebrates its past
One pleasing aspect of the first few days of this World Cup has been seeing the link that exists between the present day and the pioneers of the past.
In the lead up to the tournament column inches and airtime were given over to telling the remarkable story of the four women – Deborah Griffin, Sue Dorrington, Alice D Cooper and Mary Forsyth – who got the party started back in 1991.
Griffin was part of the bid team that secured this World Cup for England and was appointed as the RFU’s first female president at the start of the month.
Seemingly everywhere you looked in Sunderland on Friday there were people soaking up the atmosphere who had played a huge part in getting the game to this point.
Whether that be the former Red Roses and Women’s Eagles enjoying the fan zone or the journalists and administrators who filed into the press conference room at the final whistle.
One of those who took their place in the comfy red leather seats at the Stadium of Light was Tara Flanagan, the one-time ‘Lock from Hell’ – and current judge – who is in town to cover the tournament as a reporter.
When Flanagan asked Kate Zackary a question the USA captain paused briefly to instigate a round of applause for the legend sat in front of her.
And it was not only players who showered Flanagan with flowers over the weekend. In York on Saturday night one bartender provided pints on the house when he found out the woman standing in front of him had won the first World Cup.
“Winning the World Cup,” as Flanagan noted the following day, “the gift that keeps on giving!”
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