{"id":652933,"date":"2026-10-21T07:52:11","date_gmt":"2026-10-21T07:52:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/652933\/"},"modified":"2026-10-21T07:52:11","modified_gmt":"2026-10-21T07:52:11","slug":"freer-red-roses-resolve-to-come-back-stronger-after-canada-end-epic-run-england-womens-rugby-union-team","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/652933\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Freer\u2019 Red Roses resolve to come back stronger after Canada end epic run | England women’s rugby union team"},"content":{"rendered":"

England\u2019s glittering unbeaten era is over. Canada defeated the Red Roses<\/a> to deal them a first defeat in four years after 40 wins and one draw. It was a landmark result for the Canadians, who will look to replicate the outcome this weekend when the two nations meet again. England must reset but they won\u2019t panic; the Red Roses have been the standard bearers for the past seven years, which is why they have lost only twice in 73 matches. But while no team would ever aim to lose, falling to defeat is a good thing for England and the wider sport.<\/p>\n

Losing could actually make England a deadlier team to face. That is because they now need to find another level to their game with teams beginning to figure out ways to beat them. They have been pushed over the past few years by teams such as Canada, New Zealand and France, but they always had just enough to get the result over the line. Now they have been presented with a new challenge and John Mitchell, who lost his first game as Red Roses head coach, said post-defeat when his side \u201cgets a setback, it generally learns quicker\u201d.<\/p>\n

It is not just tactically and physically that the Red Roses may grow, but the mentality of the group may also shift. A defeat was inevitable at some stage, with everyone watching and waiting for the game in which it would come. Mitchell said his players may feel \u201cfreer\u201d now that the unbeaten run is over.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe important thing is winning after winning is harder than before,\u201d he said. \u201cI guess what it does to everyone is it frees us up, which is cool. It allows us all to find more. I know this group has definitely got more in it but sometimes it requires the context that we have just received to dig deeper and push for something more.\u201d<\/p>\n

Losing an international rugby game is a new experience for some of the players in the squad. Abi Burton and Maddie Feaunati are among those who have never tasted defeat for England. Jess Breach\u2019s record is an incredible 59 wins and one loss. The defeat may make those players more versatile and adaptable, too.<\/p>\n

The England captain, Meg Jones, said of the initial reaction from the squad: \u201cFor us the biggest thing is that we stick together. Games are built on moments, it is not one individual moment, it is multiple. That is the beauty of it and we get to review it, we get to go again next weekend, we get to stick together.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it is good for us to reassess this and see where we are at. I think togetherness is the main message to come out of that because it\u2019s how you respond when you have had a loss, I think that is the biggest test of character.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are lessons at the end of the day, I don\u2019t think a loss necessarily changes the way we approach things. You genuinely do learn from it. I spoke to Burts [Abi Burton] and we said: \u2018How many games have we lost in our career?\u2019 And we had a little chuckle, those are the ones that shape you the most at times. It\u2019s the biggest lesson for sure. Teams are coming out to beat us, they are going to put their best foot forward. We need to make sure we have got our best foot forward as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ellie Kildunne (centre) tries to make ground without success during the match. Photograph: Phamai Techaphan\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n

The fact that England ended their unbeaten run away from home is also significant. Had the Red Roses lost one of their home games, which they almost did against the same opposition with that draw in Exeter, it would still have been a good thing for the team but the benefits would have been less impactful.<\/p>\n

It is rare for the Red Roses to play non-Six Nations teams away from home and the revamped WXV gives them more of those experiences, perfect preparation for the 2029 World Cup in Australia. England won\u2019t have the cushion of home support and stadiums they are used to playing in when they attempt to defend their title in three years\u2019 time, which is the ultimate goal of this cycle.<\/p>\n

If England get into a potentially similar situation in 2029 they won\u2019t be in unfamiliar territory. They have now been away from home, in front of a hostile crowd and lost for the first time since the 2022 World Cup final<\/a>. In three years they may be able to weather the storm better and have more contingency plans.<\/p>\n

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Mitchell had said before WXV began that the away part of these series of matches would be an \u201caudition for 2029\u201d. After the defeat against Canada, he was asked if this outcome and experience is what the team needed. \u201cDefinitely [it is],\u201d he said. \u201cI think even before that message we said: \u2018Come and get us.\u2019 We have been asking for someone to come and get us and they have done that. Not that we designed that to happen, far from it. We have to respond.\u201d<\/p>\n

Canada\u2019s victory is a sign of other teams stepping up to challenge England, according to John Mitchell. Photograph: Leonardo Ramirez\/Eyepix Group\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n

For the sport more generally, this defeat may attract more fans or encourage those already watching to stick around and attend more matches. Rugby needs jeopardy and the thrill of a game comes when fans do not know who will be the winner on matchday. Of course this one loss won\u2019t mean England\u2019s dominance will disappear but when they play other top-five nations there will be more doubt over whether they will be the ones to come out on top.<\/p>\n

England\u2019s unbeaten ticker may now stand at zero but no one will forget the run of 41 games. The Red Roses are written into history and their world record may never be beaten. They have forced other teams to raise their game and made many take notice of women\u2019s rugby with millions now following. England are entering a new era and they have a chance for immediate revenge this weekend as they play Canada once again. They will see it as an opportunity to start a new unbeaten run.<\/p>\n

This is an extract from our weekly rugby union email, the Breakdown. To subscribe just visit this page<\/a> and follow the instructions.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"England\u2019s glittering unbeaten era is over. Canada defeated the Red Roses to deal them a first defeat in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":652934,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[85,46,105],"class_list":["post-652933","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/652933","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=652933"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/652933\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/652934"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=652933"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=652933"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=652933"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}