Women’s Rugby World Cup: England dominant whilst Wales wilt again

Local TV Sport

The 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup has been a landmark tournament, setting records for attendances, television viewers, and overall engagement. For England, the home side, it has been a demonstration of both dominance and depth. Wales, by contrast, have endured a campaign to forget. Sean Lynn’s side finished winless, capping their tournament with a thrilling but ultimately futile 28-25 loss to Fiji.

Transcript

00:00The 2025 Women's Rugby World Cup has been a landmark tournament setting records for

00:08attendances, television viewers and overall engagement. For England, the home side, it's

00:14been a demonstration of both dominance and depth. The Red Roses topped their pool with

00:20emphatic victories showcasing the strength of the squad and the progress of the women's

00:25game in this country. Their high-scoring displays have reinforced England as a global powerhouse,

00:33mirroring the commercial and cultural momentum seen in the Lionesses' footballing success.

00:40We attacked really well and we defended really well against the tough Samoa team and I think

00:45we definitely stuck to our plan and our process that we had throughout the week and I think

00:49that definitely showed in even the wet weather we had today. And before the game, what was

00:52the objective? Obviously to win, but was there anything that you wanted to put out? Combinations?

00:59Anything in particular that you're really working on in this game?

01:02Yeah, I think we had some debut World Cup people that were able to get their cap so I think

01:07that's pretty special for them so we wanted them to go into the game with a lot of confidence

01:12which I think we grew throughout the week and we wanted to right some wrongs from the USA

01:15game and then I think we're moving in definitely a good direction going into Australia.

01:19And do you feel that there's a real momentum building now, obviously two really strong

01:23results against two good sides?

01:25Yeah, definitely. I think we feel confident, which I think we should and we have momentum

01:31and I think it's really important that we don't rest on it and we keep going and we keep

01:35pushing because we're not perfect and obviously we've still got a lot of games to go and I think

01:41everyone's just going to rest up and look forward to going down to the seaside.

01:44Yeah, not sure. Mitch is obviously on that one so he can make the decisions there and

01:48we'll trust all of his judgments and we trust everything that he does. We trust his game

01:53plan, we trust the coaching staff and everyone around him so yeah, that's really important

01:57for us that we just keep believing whatever team goes out will do the right job. Australia

02:01played quite expansive so we'll probably look to cut that off at some point but it's the

02:05same messaging for us, it's all about us. Again, the feedback we're getting from the game

02:10and what we can bring into the next game. Wales, by contrast, have endured a campaign

02:15to forget. Sean Lynn's side finished winless, capping their tournament with a thrilling but

02:21ultimately futile 28-25 loss to Fiji. Well, there were Sparks pals at Maisie Run, Lisa Newman's

02:28late try and a spirited second half resurgence. Wales were repeatedly undone by disallowed tries

02:34and defensive lapses. Compared to their quarter-final run finish in New Zealand three years ago,

02:41this wooden spoon campaign underscores a worrying trend of underperformance.

02:46The Welsh Rugby Union's ongoing restructuring and investment into the women's game has yet

02:52to yield tangible results on the field. Persistent issues around governance, squad support and

02:58resource allocation are now magnified in a tournament of this scale, highlighting a golf

03:04between potential and reality. Off the field, Wales, like many unions, must address the commercial

03:10challenges of women's sport. Global revenues may be rising but in the UK, sponsorship and broadcasting

03:17backing remain far below what is fully required to capitalise on the World Cup's record-setting profile.

03:24There are challenges ahead of us. We've gone through a challenging period but I truly believe we will

03:30emerge stronger from this and we will seize an opportunity. We have to seize the opportunity for

03:37change, for significant change. Last year we failed to compel and convince enough clubs that change was

03:45necessary. I think the world is a different place against again and we have to go and make significant

03:53changes in how we operate. If this organisation and through this organisation the game as a whole

03:59is to flourish, be healthy and the game and the country will be proud of us, we need to re-establish faith and trust

04:11and confidence here for our partners, for our stakeholders, for our rugby family as a whole.

04:18As the tournament draws to a close, the contrast between England's efficiency and Wales' struggles

04:24offers a clear message. While the Women's World Cup continues to break barriers, meaningful progress will

04:30only be achieved if unions like the WRU can combine investment with structure, vision and accountability.

04:37Without that, the gains celebrated on a global stage, risk being wasted.

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