England Women are just days away from their fixture against France at the Stade Ernest-Wallon (KO 3.30pm local time) – the first game of an international double header also featuring England Men versus France. And don't forget that fans can watch this year's mid-season international matches LIVE and FREE on SuperLeague+ on Saturday!
The two sides met in last year’s mid-season international at Warrington with England defeating their French counterparts 64-0.
England started the first half strongly as France struggled to find their feet, a double from Leah Burke plus tries from Shona Hoyle, Tamzin Renouf, Eboni Partington and Tara-Jane Stanley giving them a 30-0 lead at half-time.
The second half saw England just as rampant as the first, Hollie-Mae Dodd scoring twice before Sinead Peach went over.
Saturday’s squad will be a very different line-up, with the likes of Georgia Roche and Dodd now in Australia playing in the NRLW and Renouf, Stanley and Burke missing out through injury. Peach is also expecting her first child later this year.
Those changes mean that a host of the game’s emerging young talents have now been called up for the trip to Toulouse – including 17-year-old Isabel Rowe who has scored 11 tries for Wigan Warriors this season.
Rowe is one of five players called up for the first time by England Women Head Coach Stuart Barrow. St Helens duo Katie Mottershead and Erin Stott have also been selected, as have Leeds Rhinos' Izzy Northrop and Bella Sykes.
Mottershead is one of six Saints players in the squad, as is Zoe Harris, who is called up for the first time since the World Cup in 2022.
As for France, Romain Maillot's side qualified for the 2026 Women's Rugby League World Cup last Saturday by defeating Serbia 58-0.
His side got off to the perfect start, prop Perrine Monsarrat crashing over in the opening exchanges and they were well ahead at half time. Catalans centre Cristina Song-Puche posted three of their ten tries, with Lisa Diraison landing nine of ten goal attempts.
The speed of winger Perle Ramazeilles and power of prop Haoua Kessely, who both crossed twice, were too much for the hosts to handle.
The England Women squad have been training hard in camp at Warrington's Victoria Park, and will fly out to Toulouse on Friday.
England Women squad:
Caitlin Beevers, Keara Bennett (both Leeds Rhinos), Jodie Cunningham (St Helens), Anna Davies (Wigan Warriors), Amy Hardcastle (Leeds Rhinos), Zoe Harris (St Helens), Georgie Hetherington (York Valkyrie), Shona Hoyle (Leeds Rhinos), Zoe Hornby (Leeds Rhinos), Katie Mottershead (St Helens), Izzy Northrop (Leeds Rhinos), Eboni Partington (York Valkyrie) Isabel Rowe (Wigan Warriors) Emily Rudge (St Helens), Erin Stott (St Helens), Bella Sykes (Leeds Rhinos), Paige Travis (St Helens), Olivia Wood (York Valkyrie), Vicky Whitfield (St Helens).
England’s Men and Women will play France in Toulouse on Saturday 29 June, as the French Rugby League (FFR XIII) celebrates 90 years of the game in the republic.
England Women take on France at 3.30pm (local time, 2:30pm UK), followed by the Men’s international at 6pm (5pm, UK) – and both matches will be streamed LIVE and FREE from Stade Ernest-Wallon on SuperLeague+, Rugby League’s global, direct-to-consumer streaming service.
SuperLeague+ is available online at superleague.co.uk/superleagueplus, via the SuperLeague+ app on iOS and Android devices, and on connected TV platforms (Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Apple TV).
