A decisive encounter awaits England in Wollongong this Friday at 6.45am GMT, as they prepare to battle Samoa in a high-stakes fixture that will determine who secures second spot in Group A. The team that emerges victorious will earn a berth in the Women’s Rugby League World Cup semi-finals, scheduling a showdown against the top-seeded squad from Pool B in Newcastle on November 7. Following a transit from Perth, the squad must capture a win to prevent an early departure from the tournament.
This high-pressure scenario follows a humbling 78-0 defeat against a relentless Australian side on Saturday, during which the Jillaroos ran in 15 tries. Early damage was inflicted by Jaime Chapman, who crossed for two scores within the first six minutes to propel the opposition to a 36-0 advantage by halftime. The heavy loss mirrors a 90-4 beating handed out by the same country 19 months prior in Las Vegas, contrasting sharply with England’s impressive 70-6 victory over Wales in their opening match.
Despite the overwhelming outcome, head coach Stuart Barrow praised his players for maintaining their spirit throughout the entire 70 minutes. Observing a distinct shift from their past nightmare in Nevada, Barrow shared, “there are some people in the group who were at Vegas and they’re in the changing room saying ‘this wasn’t like Vegas, it doesn’t feel like Vegas, you’re not part of what happened at Vegas – this is different’.” Acknowledging the severe talent disparity on the field, the trainer noted, “I thought we fought really well for the whole 70 minutes, and that may sound a little bit silly when you’ve conceded that many points, but it felt different” before adding, “I thought we competed, but we got beat by a far better team with just too much quality.”
Barrow emphasized that the squad remains optimistic and focused on extending their campaign beyond the group stage. Refusing to let the lopsided score destroy morale, he stated, “Yeah, we didn’t help ourselves and the scoreline’s still big, but I think people have still got some positivity in there and people don’t want to go home. They want to have this game against Samoa and give our best.” Looking ahead, he underscored the necessity of learning from these tough experiences as a developing group, remarking, “We had to change the way we were going as a group [after Vegas] and we made a lot of changes to bring a young group in. This young group is going to develop and keep developing, and that’s a good learning curve from tonight.”
Reflecting on the squad’s journey, the coach wants his players to draw upon their previous successes against Wales while building for future growth. Addressing the locker room atmosphere, Barrow explained, “We’ve talked in there (changing room) about what we’ve been doing really well in training and what we did in patches last week against Wales – we can’t forget that because of this (loss), we’ve got to remember some of that stuff” and added, “I think it was important that we talked in there about our effort areas and how we continue to turn up for each other, and that’s going to stand us in good stead in the future.” Ultimately, he urged the squad to regroup immediately for the pivotal Samoa match, concluding, “We’ve got to stick to our processes, get back on the horse and get ready for another game next week.”
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