England Women’s U20s team announced for Wales Nations Cup clash by Julia Hutton

England Women Under 20s Head Coach Giselle Mather has announced her team for the penultimate round of the Nations Cup, which sees the Red Roses take on Wales at Brunel University on Wednesday, kick off 7pm.

Mather has once again made a raft of changes, giving her entire Nations Cup squad the chance to impress ahead of Saturday’s final or play-offs. Only three players; Kettering’s Lizell Heather, Leeds’ Charlotte Wild and Bath’s Marlie Packer start their second game in succession.

England so far have an impressive clean sheet in the tournament beating Canada 47-0 in the tournament opener and then the USA 42-7 on Sunday. Wales meanwhile have one win under their belt against Canada.

England last met Wales in April and ran out 26-8 winners in Cowlyn Bay but Mather is expecting a much tougher test this time around. She said: “When Wales beat Canada on Sunday they played really well so we are taking this match very seriously.

“We may have beaten Wales earlier this season, but we also remember how well Wales played against us in the final of the Nations Cup a year ago. We won that match 14-0 but it could easily have gone the other way so I know this will be a very tough match and nothing like the game we played in Cowlyn Bay. This is a big game, and with so much at stake for both sides we have to be on top of our game.”

Also in action on Wednesday is Canada versus the USA, kick off 5pm.

England:

15 Natasha Hunt Bath
14 Lizell Heather Kettering
13 Rose Fong Darlington Mowden Park Sharks RFC
12 Sarah McKenna Old Albanian Saints RFC
11 Garnet MacKinder Exeter Saracens RFC
10 Claire Garner Leeds Leos RFC
9 Jessie-Joy Flowers West Park RFC
1 Sasha Acheson Sudbury RFC
2 Victoria Fleetwood Lichfield RFC
3 Charlotte Male Plymouth Albion RFC
4 Harriet Mills Manchester RFC
5 Charlotte Wild Leeds Met Uni
6 Marlie Packer Bath RFC Captain
7 Hannah Field Reading RFC
8 Nicola Hoole Bath RFC
Replacements:
16 Victoria Cornborough Richmond RFC
17 Elizabeth Peak Oakmedians RFC
18 Davinia Monterio Bath RFC
19 Amy Miller Reading RFC
20 Hannah Walker-Smart Paviors RFC
21 Kimberley Davey Richmond RFC
22 Samantha Bree Worcester RFC

Nations Cup Under 20s Table:

England 10
Wales 5
USA 4
Canada 1

Under 20s Nations Cup playing schedule:

July 9th
Wales 3 USA 7
Canada 0 England 47

July 12th

Canada 11 Wales 16
England 42. USA 7

July 15th
Canada vs. USA, 5pm
England vs. Wales, 7pm

July 18th

Consolation Finals, 130pm
Final, 330pm