England vs France rugby LIVE: Result and reaction as England win Women’s Six Nations grand slam decider

England 38-33 France: A world-record crowd of more than 58,000 were at Twickenham to see England seal another Women’s Six Nations grand slam

(Action Images via Reuters)

England beat a spirited France 38-33 to win their fifth straight Women’s Six Nations title with a grand slam in front of a world-record crowd at Twickenham to give coach Simon Middleton a fitting farewell.

With 58,498 fans in attendance, England struggled with nerves at first before pulling away from fellow unbeaten side France to go into the break with a commanding 33-0 lead.

Abby Dow scored England’s first try and although Helena Rowland missed the conversion, she made no mistake when captain Marlie Packer and Alex Matthews powered over. France were also temporarily down to 14 players when Jessy Tremouliere was sent to the sin bin, which also welcomed Rose Bernadou later in the half, helping England to score from a penalty try before Zoe Aldcroft also went over.

But England took their foot off the gas in the second half and France got on the board when Emilie Boulard scored the opening try before Gabrielle Vernier went through the English defence for a second. Both teams then scored from rolling mauls to make it 38-21 to England with 65 minutes on the clock. With five minutes left, France rallied with two more tries from Emeline Gros and Cyrielle Banet, but Tremouliere missed the first conversion as England held on for another grand slam.

Relive England’s historic win over France in the Women’s Six Nations, below

England vs France LIVE: Updates from Women’s Six Nations decider

• England beat France 38-33 at Twickenham in Women’s Six Nations grand slam decider
• A world record crowd for women’s rugby of more than 58,000 people watch the Twickenham triumph
• FULL-TIME! England 38-33 France
• 80’ - TRY! Banet crosses for second of France’s late consolation tries (ENG 38-33 FRA)
• 66’ - TRY! Escudero touches down from the back of a drive (ENG 38-21 FRA)
• 60’ - TRY! Davies dots down from an unstoppable drive (ENG 38-14 FRA)
• 55’ - TRY! Vernier snipes over from the base of a ruck after great dummy (ENG 33-14 FRA)
• 49’ - TRY! France finally score as Boulard barrels over out wide (ENG 33-7 FRA)
• 40’ - TRY! Aldcroft finishes a neat team move for the fifth try (ENG 33-0 FRA)
• 37’ - PENALTY TRY! Bernadou tackles from an offside position on the line (ENG 26-0 FRA)
• 32’ - TRY! Dominant England scrum ends with Matthews touching down (ENG 19-0 FRA)Eng
• 26’ - TRY! Sublime Heard offload allows Packer to power across the line (ENG 12-0 FRA)
• 17’ - TRY! Dow shows incredible pace to blaze over from England’s first attack (ENG 5-0 FRA)

[29 April 2023 13:10 · Mike Jones]

England 0-0 France

10 mins: Jessy Tremouliere knocks on trying to squeeze through a gap on the left side of England’s line. The first scrum of the match is set up inside England’s 22 and this will be a marker to see how well Hannah Botterman will hold up after her injury.

Lucy Packer loads and collects the ball but the intensity of France means England drill the ball down field.

[29 April 2023 13:08 · Mike Jones]

England 0-0 France

7 mins: Another penalty sees France gain a brilliant field position just in front of the England try line. A decent maul from the French gets them in front of the sticks but a turnover in possession relieves the pressure on the Red Roses!

[29 April 2023 13:05 · Mike Jones]

England 0-0 France

5 mins: Miss! England are let off as Jessy Tremouliere hooks her penalty kick wide to the left of the uprights. That was a big chance for France to take the lead.

[29 April 2023 13:05 · Mike Jones]

England 0-0 France

4 mins: Emilie Boulard sends the ball out wide on the left wing where Axelle Berthoumie drives down the line and needs two defenders to bring her down.

France have been the attacking force over these opening minutes and win the penalty over on the inside right.

[29 April 2023 13:02 · Mike Jones]

England 0-0 France

2 mins: Helena Rowland sends the ball out for a line-out that Agathe Sochat launches back into play. Gaelle Hermet collects the ball and France sweep it along the line.

England’s defence is strong and they force the visitors backwards forcing the French to fall back on their kicking game.

[29 April 2023 13:00 · Mike Jones]

KICK OFF! England 0-0 France

The national anthems are played, the atmosphere builds and the match gets underway. French fly half, Jessy Tremouliere is also playing her final international match and will be retiring after today. Will she be on the winning side?

France kick off the match.

[29 April 2023 12:55 · Mike Jones]

England vs France LIVE: Women’s Six Nations updates

Marlie Packer is back after injury and she leads England out onto the pitch at Twickenham in front of this record breaking crowd. This is going to be a cracking game with honours and trophies on the line.

The two best teams of the Women’s Six Nations go head-to-head to see who’ll claim a grand slam and take the title.

[29 April 2023 12:52 · Mike Jones]

England vs France LIVE: Women’s Six Nations updates

Simon Middleton is bowing out as England’s head coach after today’s match. He’s spent eight years in the role and has formed wonderful relationships with the players.

Would there be a better way to leave the role than a Woman’s Six Nations victory and a grand slam?

[29 April 2023 12:48 · Mike Jones]

England vs France

53,000 fans are expected at Twickenham today to watch England and France fight it out to see who will win the Women’s Six Nations and claim the grand slam.

They’ve been arriving in droves and the atmosphere is building nicely.

(Getty Images)

(Getty Images)

(Action Images via Reuters)

[29 April 2023 12:41 · Jamie Braidwood]

England vs France LIVE: Women’s Six Nations updates

England and France’s Six Nations decider shows how far the women’s game has come

The signs have been up for weeks now, familiar warnings of a major event to come. Expect delays, they say, on 29 April; there’s a rugby game on at Twickenham. Those unfortunate enough to be particularly well acquainted with the Surrey swing of the London Orbital will recognise the notices, ready to swerv the matchday swell around Junction 12 that accompanies any England matchday.

But for those with long associations with women’s rugby, those same neon flashes have brought a lump in the throat and a tear to the eye and a prompt for reflection. On Saturday afternoon, England’s women take to the Twickenham turf for the first time in a standalone fixture, with in excess of 53,000 tickets sold for the best attended women’s rugby fixture in history. The warnings of the crowds to come have stirred special feelings for those who have fought so long to lay the foundations for progress and a day just like this.

England vs France big match preview, by Harry Latham-Coyle