Captain Sophie de Goede of Victoria showed why she is the reigning World Rugby women\u2019s player of the year by scoring two tries and kicking three converts for a towering 16-point performance in Canada\u2019s 31-22 Test victory over England in front of 13,117 fans Friday evening at TD Place Stadium in Ottawa.<\/p>\n
It was Canada\u2019s second consecutive victory on home turf over the defending World Cup champions following last week\u2019s 24-21 win at BMO Field in Toronto before a Canadian women\u2019s rugby record crowd of 18,621 that halted the Red Roses\u2019 41-game unbeaten streak dating to 2022.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am immensely proud, it\u2019s so special for us to do it on home soil,\u201d de Goede said in a statement. \u201cThe crowds have been incredible and I\u2019m very proud of our team and very proud of the showing that we had as Canadian fans,\u201d added the graduate of the Oak Bay High School, James Bay and Castaway Wanderers programs.<\/p>\n
\u201cWithin our team, we\u2019ve talked about it a lot \u2014 backing up a great performance with another one. So to be able to have such a strong performance this weekend is definitely something we\u2019ll hold onto until we come back together again.\u201d<\/p>\n
Canada also played to a 26-26 draw against England last month in Exeter in the WXV Global Series tournament that halted the world No. 1 side\u2019s 39-game winning streak, which became England\u2019s 41-game unbeaten run, until last week in Toronto. Included in England\u2019s run was the 33-13 win over Canada in the 2025 World Cup championship game before nearly 82,000 fans at Twickenham in London.<\/p>\n
De Goede knew England would be motivated and energized in Ottawa but the Canadians absorbed those emotions and threw it right back at the Red Roses.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe built some confidence last week [in Toronto] and we knew that we could manage England, having had positive momentum, and find a way to regain it,\u201d said the Islander.<\/p>\n
As in the match in Toronto, the Canadians rallied from a \u00adsecond-half deficit in Ottawa. Also scoring tries for Canada were Julia Omokhuale and DeLeaka Menin while one of de Goede\u2019s tries was assisted by \u00adfellow Oak Bay Castaway Wanderers product Gabrielle Senft.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had to get back momentum in the second half and we just talked about weathering the storm and we knew we would come out of it,\u201d said de Goede, adding that the results against England are a big boost on the road to the next World Cup in 2029 in Australia.<\/p>\n
Before that will be the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics in sevens rugby, of which de Goede plans to be a part, after the palpable disappointment of missing Canada\u2019s run to the silver medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics with a torn ACL.<\/p>\n
Langford-based Rugby \u00adCanada continued showing its program versatility on the women\u2019s side with five players from the 2024 Paris Olympics silver-medallist sevens team involved Friday in Ottawa with the XVs team versus England \u2014 starters Asia Hogan-Rochester out of Westshore RFC, Olivia Apps, Florence Symonds, Alysha Corrigan with Caroline Crossley of Victoria off the bench in her return from long-term injury.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe still have lots of new players coming into the environment during the cycle which is positive for our future, if we want to be ready for the World Cup in 2029,\u201d said Canada head coach Kevin Rouet.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, looking back the other way is the currently-streaming Crave documentary series, All Heart: A Rugby Story, about de Goede and her play in leading Canada to the 2025 World Cup championship game.<\/p>\n