Tales from Twickenham Stadium: Red Roses 38-33 France, 29th April 2023
As August becomes September, Twickenham Stadium becomes the Allianz Stadium for the next ten years.
A new era of English rugby will be presented to the world with the ground’s first fixture under its new name, England women versus New Zealand.
The second of England’s September internationals, the world’s top-ranked nation will face off against the reigning Rugby World Cup champions in the Red Roses’ second Twickenham fixture of 2024.
This will be England women’s third ever standalone fixture at the national stadium, following their Six Nations domination of Ireland in April and their defeat of France in 2023.
Hosting the Women’s Rugby World Cup in 2025, England hope to sell out the stadium for the tournament’s final.
Red Roses vs France, 29th April 2023
A ground-breaking day for women’s rugby, England clinched a second consecutive Six Nations Grand Slam crown with a 38-33 victory over France.
In front of a then- world record crowd for women’s rugby of 58,498, the Red Roses raced to a 33-0 lead at half-time before France scored five tries of their own in the second half to come within touching distance of an upset.
Following Rugby World Cup heartbreak in 2022, this was head coach Simon Middleton’s final match in charge of the Red Roses before being replaced by former All Black John Mitchell.
England’s first standalone women’s fixture at Twickenham Stadium is an occasion that cannot be understated, with former captain Gill Burns unveiling the women’s honours board inside Twickenham’s home changing room.
In her emotive speech Burns said: “We are now, every one of us, part of the fabric of the stadium, and the privilege of being associated with the current crop of players is a huge honour.”
https://twitter.com/EnglandRugby/status/1651926965522137088
Growing the Red Roses
Coming as the first stage of promoting women’s rugby to equal status within English rugby, this match has helped to raise the profile of the sport from a side show to the main event.
Previously only playing at Twickenham to supplement men’s fixtures, head coach Mitchell said following their drubbing of Ireland: “We’ve still got to drive to fill this stadium on a constant basis. We want to play here consistently.
“If we continue to produce performances like that, it won’t be too long before we fill the top green seats.”
Rugby journalist Jessica Hayden has pointed out how the Rugby Football Union has attempted to grow the side’s profile by following the model set by Arsenal Football Club.
She said: “Arsenal women are the most successful women’s sports team in the United Kingdom. They are doing incredible things. They have sold out stadiums, they really focus on data and have so much information on their fans, which means they can market to them well. If there is any model to follow, Arsenal should be the one.
“What they do on social media is that Arsenal women have their own separate identity, and the Arsenal men’s account repost their best things. That’s what the Red Roses are going for.”
Taking the show on the road, the Red Roses have played at Premiership grounds across the country in an effort to grow their exposure, helping to make these Twickenham fixtures such an occasion.
