The old bus idiom seems appropriate here: you wait ages for one, then two turn up at once. So it has proved for the Red Roses and defeats.

After their 41-match unbeaten run was ended by Canada last week, they suffered back-to-back losses for the first time in a decade. Back in 2016, it was also Canada who beat them a few months after France, but in the 10 years since there have been only six defeats in total for England. This is a new experience for the world champions. 

What will be more concerning for the Red Roses is Canada’s dominance in this match. While they snuck a narrow victory with a late try in Toronto, they triumphed convincingly in Ottawa and out-scored their rivals five tries to three, with their captain fantastic Sophie de Goede to the fore.

The match fell on Meg Jones’s 30th birthday but there were no reasons to celebrate for England’s captain. The defeat instead raises serious questions about this Red Roses team.

Yes, they should beat the United States comfortably next weekend in their final match of the WXV Global Series, but Canada have highlighted worrying trends for John Mitchell’s side. 

The back-line again struggled to find any fluency, moves breaking down because of their own handling errors and players we are used to seeing cut through defences at will hitting a red wall. The physicality of that Canada defence often forced England to kick the ball away in a bid to gain territory because they were going backwards when keeping it in hand.

For the second week running, Canada looked to have the slicker, sharper attack. Alysha Corrigan looked dangerous on the wing while Shoshanah Seumanutafa, the match-winner in Toronto, produced delicate touches to find space and release her team-mates.

England’s defence struggled to live with them, particularly when Canada spread the ball wide and they were caught in a narrow set-up. The Savannah Bauder try that put Canada in control of this match midway through the second half was a case in point: released down the wing, she beat both Alex Matthews and Emma Sing to score. She is a great runner but it was too easy. 

The scrum was again a huge positive for England and they won numerous penalties at the set-piece, but they could rarely capitalise on it because of the fractured nature of the rest of their game. These players have rarely been put under such pressure as they have faced in Canada and they have struggled to cope with it. That, and the inaccuracies across their game, is what the coaches need to address as the team start to build up to their World Cup defence. 

They did make a positive start when Maddie Feaunati surged over from close range inside the opening 10 minutes after a series of hard carries on the line from the forwards.

But Julia Omokhuale was quick to score a similar try at the opposite end of the pitch before de Goede put the hosts in front following an impressive Gabrielle Senft break. 

Zoe Harrison opting to kick a penalty early in the second half illustrated how England recognised the tight nature of the game and they then turned to one of their greatest strengths to regain the lead: their rolling maul, with Amy Cokayne touching down. 

The lead lasted just three minutes, however, as England were caught napping at a ruck as De Goede broke straight through the middle to score her second. 

She completed her hat-trick from a Canada maul around the hour mark before Bauder produced her brilliant finish. Sing did score with the final play but it was too little too late for the world champions.

Match details