No easy games Middleton sends warning to side after opening win
ENGLAND coach Simon Middleton insisted there is room for improvement despite his side’s emphatic 84-19 win over tournament debutants Fiji in their World Cup opener.
The Red Roses assured themselves of a bonus point in the first half but they led only 24-14 at the interval before scoring 10 tries after the break.
Gloucester-hartpury’s Zoe Aldcroft and Connie Powell were among the scorers.
They are among 11 members of the squad with connections to Hartpury College and University.
Gloucester-hartpury players Aldcroft, and Alex Matthews started the Fiji clash while Powell and Maud Muir were on the bench, with another of their side, Tatyana Heard, in the squad.
Aldcroft formerly studied a Level 3 Extended Diploma Sport (Rugby), before moving on to study the BSC Sport and Exercise Sciences degree.
Matthews studied A-levels while being a part of the AASE (Advanced Apprenticeship in Sporting Excellence) Women’s Rugby programme, mirroring the pathway of Heard.
Powell studied the Advanced Apprenticeship in Sporting Excellence in Rugby (AASE) and Level 3 Extended Diploma Sport (Rugby) before progressing to the BA (Hons) Sports Business Management degree.
A further six former students are in the squad including University alumni Sarah Bern, Hannah Botterman, Amy Cokayne (AASE), Holly Aitchison (BA (Hons) Sports Business Management), Zoe Harrison (A-levels) and Ellie Kildunne (A-levels and AASE).
Cokayne scored two tries against Fiji with Harrison kicking two conversions, while Kildunne and Bern also started the game and Botterman and Aitchison were on the bench.
Middleton believes Fiji’s first half performance served as a timely reminder that his team must discover their optimum level for the tasks that are to come.
Middleton said: “One thing this has shown is that there are going to be no gimmes in this competition.
“Fiji were outstanding in that first half, really compact and really physical. I think we were nervous but who wouldn’t be?
“It wasn’t like we were being pumped at half-time, we were still 24-14 up, but I think we would’ve hoped we’d done a few things a little bit better, but we did better in the second half for sure.”
Claudia Macdonald scored four tries and Cokayne and Lydia Thompson two apiece, with Abbie Ward, Helena Rowland, Aldcroft, Abby Dow, Leanne Infante and Powell also crossing
Emily Scarratt kicked five conversions, with Harrison booting two.
Cokayne crossed in the eighth minute, lock Ward (18) and winger Macdonald (27) had them in the clear before Fiji responded with a try of their own from Alowesi Nakoci (31).
Rowland crossed two minutes before half-time but Sesenieli Donu’s individual effort meant Fiji trailed by just 10 points at the interval.
However, Middleton’s team dominated the second half. Cokayne went over again two minutes after the resumption, winger Thompson crossed twice (50 and 53) and Macdonald claimed three more (56, 70 and 76).
There were also scores for Aldcroft (45), winger Dow (59), reserve hooker Powell (74) and scrum-half Leanne Infante (65), before Fiji had the final say through Lavena Cavuru.