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John Mitchell issues England 'dial it up again' warning to France
By PA
John Mitchell has warned France that England are ready to “dial it up again” when the rivals clash in Saturday’s Grand Slam decider in Bordeaux.
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The Red Roses flattened Ireland 88-10 at Twickenham in round four, their attack igniting to run in 14 tries and placing them one victory away from clinching a sixth successive Guinness Women’s Six Nations title.
Ranked third in the world, France are a far tougher proposition but Mitchell has insisted that England will continue to push the boundaries in their pursuit of an all-action type of rugby that will fill stadiums.
“We are very specific in the way that we will play. It’s a game that is working and we think it’s the right way,” the head coach said.
“We have got better as the tournament has progressed and who said there are limits on the style that we produced last weekend?
“We have the ability to dial it up again. It certainly won’t be stopping. It will continue to evolve. It has challenged a lot of the girls.
“They fully understand where we are heading but this group sets such high standards that they will never be satisfied. We will always want to get better.”
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England have won the last 12 meetings in the fixture but France remain their fiercest rivals and will provide a hostile reception for Marlie Packer’s side in what is expected to be close to a 34,462 full house at the Stade Chaban-Delmas.
The two sides will meet again in September in WXV1 but their immediate objective is completing the Grand Slam. “We have been expecting an arm wrestle for some time,” continued Mitchell.
“We have been wanting that, we have been asking for it and we are certainly going to get in on the weekend. This game is going to give us really good feedback.
“It’s important to experience that and it will hold us in good stead. We have got a tough summer coming up and this is a good start to it.
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“France have got their way. They will be buoyed by the fact they are at home but we are actually looking forward to embracing that challenge.
“It’s another full-capacity stadium, which gives us energy too. That is what drives the girls – they want to play in front of full capacity.”