‘We are comparable’: USA aim to prove themselves against England

USA Women’s Eagles head coach Jack Hanratty is not expecting the Red Roses to do anything differently after back-to-back losses against Canada in WXV Global Series.

In fact, he expects quite the opposite.

On Friday afternoon the Eagles and England will meet amid contrasting fortunes at Sports Illustrated Stadium.

John Mitchell’s Red Roses have seen a 41-match unbeaten streak ended and lost consecutive fixtures for the first time in a decade.

The USA, meanwhile, have won five games in a row for the first time in two decades.

“I don’t think they’re going to try new things,” Hanratty said.

“I think they’re going to put out an incredibly strong team to try and not only show the world that they’re, if not number one, they still want to show that they’re number one.

“And to do that would be not only winning a game, but showing dominance in everything.”

Bella Vogel has emerged as a symbol of the USA’s resurgence. The 19-year-old has been at the epicentre of the Eagles’ efforts and has been nominated for World Rugby Women’s 15s Breakthrough Player of the Year. She is the first American to receive a nomination.

Friday night will be the first time she has played England. Coming up against the likes of Meg Jones, Holly Aitchison and Tatyana Heard in the middle of the park will surely be an education for the Life University student.

But, the USA are not the same team the Red Roses met in their Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 opener. Almost 15 months ago, England beat the Eagles 69-7 at the Stadium of Light to kick-start their world title charge. Now the North Americans have won five on the bounce, including wins against Ireland, Wales and consecutive victories against Italy.

“I definitely think that England’s going to be a tough game, and I think that all their fans and whatnot are going to be like, ‘Oh, it’s just USA, blah, blah, blah’,” Vogel smiled.

“I remember there was a post and it was like, ‘Canada, England and USA are the only teams that haven’t lost a game’. And people in the comments were like, ‘Oh, why would you compare England to USA?’

“And I think that this is our chance to show them that we are comparable, and that we are just as good as any top-three team.”

Ahead of England’s visit, Hanratty has made just two changes to the team that won 54-24 against Italy last time out in Nashville.

This includes a return to the starting XV for record appearance maker Hope Rogers, who came off the bench a week ago, while Abigail Paton is installed as the starting scrum-half.

Friday’s fixture is sure to push the Eagles right to the very limit. Beating Ireland and registering a win against a team ranked within the world’s top five is one thing, but the long-standing number one side? That is a different kettle of fish altogether.

“Our job this week is to challenge them,” Hanratty said. “We want to see what aspects of the game have we grown that we can challenge the world’s best? That’s our job.

“I think we’ve got a bit of an opportunity for a free hit. But I love the fact that we’re coming into it with momentum.

“It’s at the end of an eight-week tour, and it’s amazing that our meetings are still energetic and our training sessions are still actually of quality.

“For me, the fact that we get to play at home against the world champions – what an incredible end to Bella’s first year, to my own first year and to this squad’s first year of what hopefully will be an incredible four years.”