Alex Matthews: Six Nations will banish memories of England’s Rugby World Cup defeat | Rugby Union News

Crimson Roses’ Alex Matthews believes Six Nations supply England likelihood to shut door to Rugby World Cup closing defeat; England’s Six Nations marketing campaign kicks off on Saturday March 25 towards Scotland, with kick-off at 4.45pm.

Simply over 4 months have handed since England’s grotesque defeat within the Girls’s Rugby World Cup closing, however any lingering reminiscences of that will likely be banished at 4.45pm on Saturday.

Elite-level sport is an unforgiving place at the most effective of occasions, so reigning TikTok Girls’s Six Nations champions know there will be no mistaking November’s 34-31 loss to hosts Eden. Park – particularly with a event opener towards Scotland to arrange for.

This conflict at Newcastle’s Kingston Park launches the Crimson Roses’ quest to retain their Six Nations crown for the fifth consecutive 12 months and Alex Matthews is adamant they’re firmly targeted on what’s to return relatively than something that has come earlier than.

“Our factor now’s to widen the hole with the opposite 5 groups [in the Six Nations]”Matthews, one of many England squad gamers who took half in that World Cup closing defeat, informed the official Six Nations web site.

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“Clearly it was heartbreaking at first. You spend a lot time collectively, I believe a number of the women felt misplaced sufficient to get again to regular life.

“I at all times thought it was only a recreation. I prefer it and that is why I play, however it’s a must to be fairly delicate to how everybody handles it. It’s important to let everybody deal with it individually at his approach.”

England are eyeing the long run in additional methods than one, with head coach Simon Middleton ending his eight-year tenure on the finish of this 12 months’s Six Nations, which can culminate in a possible Grand Slam decider towards France at Twickenham in April. 29.

The 57-year-old just isn’t pondering of himself and has as a substitute tried to make sure the Crimson Roses are in good stead for his eventual successor by bringing a number of the promising gamers as much as the senior setup.

The final World Cup noticed 15 gamers with a mean age of 23 bow out to England, and Middleton named 9 newcomers to his 42-man squad for this 12 months’s Six Nations whereas persevering with to watch carefully the U18 and U20 groups. .

“It is actually vital that we watch these gamers and that solely provides to the thrill of the event,” Middleton informed the official England Rugby web site. “These younger gamers play an enormous function.

“They’re completely important and we worth our journey very a lot. It’s a improbable camp for these gamers and we should proceed to develop this pool sooner or later.

“I could not consider a greater place to hang around, but it surely will not be about me. It is in regards to the alternative and placing us able the place we will try to go for the Grand Slam.”

A part of the group’s consideration has been to evolve their attacking recreation, which ought to be a foul signal for the Crimson Roses’ opponents after operating in 45 tries in 5 matches within the Six Nations of the final 12 months.

However Matthews is in little question that that is an space the place the group can enhance from open play, whereas sustaining their energy of having the ability to devastate groups by means of mauls and drives from lineouts.

“Offense is certainly an space that was talked about in our evaluate,” Matthews mentioned. “We would like to have the ability to play a bit extra, the ladies must have the arrogance to play and never simply kick for the lineouts we all know we’re good at.

“We now have to have the ability to adapt to have the ability to do all the pieces when these occasions come.

“It offers the ladies a chance to point out what they’ve. They got here to coaching final week and the operating traces, the unloading of the sport, it acquired me excited from the aspect of the pitch watching.”