Sitting In The Cheap Seats

It’s a World Cup year for England Women and as such the forthcoming Six Nations tournament is the last real opportunity for head coach Simon Middleton to refine his squad ahead of the trip to New Zealand. While the Red Roses core has seemed remarkably consistent through recent seasons, a close examination shows that there has been plenty of change through the squad. Here I highlight six players who just might play their way into the head coach’s thinking ahead of the tournament. First of all, a few ground rules. None of the players I’m picking here have appeared in England squads over recent international windows. I’ve picked on a mix of current form, potential and in a couple of cases who have had injury issues, the talent they have shown previously.

A huge shout out to Harlequins for being the first Gallagher Premiership and Allianz Premier 15s team to create a Pride fixture and today taking that a step further with the launch of their LGBTQ+ Supporters Association to sit alongside their existing SA. It’s great to see the game making moves to make people feel seen and included. Here’s hoping other teams follow suit! Read on for the full announcement from the team.

He’s a former fan favourite from the cherry and whites, now making a name for himself as an up and coming young coaching talent with Gloucester-Hartpruy Women.  We caught up with James Forrester to see how he’s settling in.

Fresh off a combative five point win against Newcastle, London Irish turn their attention to Gloucester. The Cherry and Whites are rooted to the bottom of the Premiership table but will always be a tough team to play against. We caught up with DoR Declan Kidney and talismanic hooker Agustin Creevy to find out their thoughts.