By Jonathan Bowen
This weekend marks the start of the Rugby Women’s World Cup which will be held in New Zealand. The tournament was due to be played in 2021 but due to COVID, the tournament, like a lot of other major events, was postponed for a year.
The excitement is building for the start of the tournament in New Zealand as it was confirmed during the week that 30,000 tickets have already been sold for the opening game between Australia and New Zealand. I have no doubt by kick off time Eden Park will be packed to the rafters with fans eagerly awaiting the start of the tournament.
I want to start this preview by mentioning a very important event which took place last week: Legendary American Women’s Rugby Player Kathy Flores was inducted into the World Rugby Hall of Fame. Kathy was part of a selection of six women that were inducted.
A first for women rugby players, Kathy was part of the USA team that won the first Rugby Women’s World Cup in 1991. Kathy was devoted to promoting and playing the game of rugby throughout the United States.
As a player and coach, not only did she win the World Cup in 1991 she also won 15 National Championship Titles with the Berkley Blues. Sadly, Kathy passed away in October 2021 but the mark she left on the game in the US will never be forgotten.
Congratulations must also go to the other women inducted into the Rugby Hall of Fame: Deborah Griffin, Sue Dorrington, Alice D Cooper, Mary Forsyth and Fiao’o Fa’amausili.
So let’s get this review started with Pool A, made up of New Zealand, Australia, Wales and Scotland.
New Zealand will no doubt top this group; they have won games with ease this year, only the Canadians and USA really giving them a scare. The question with this group is who will finish in second and third place?
I got chatting to the Scottish teams’ delegates on my recent trip to Auckland and they spoke of making the quarterfinals, the benchmark they are setting for themselves.
Wales will be a challenge in this group. They beat Scotland and Ireland in the Six Nations tournament this year, however in their build up games to the World Cup they lost heavily to both England and Canada so finding form early in the pool games will be key to their progression out of the group.
Australia will fancy their chances although their recent form may not back up their confidence. Australia lost to the USA, Canada, and New Zealand (multiple times) so far this year.
I expect New Zealand to top the group and Wales then Scotland to progress.
Pool B is by far the most even group. The group is made up of Canada, USA, Italy, and Japan.
Canada are the sleeping giants of the tournament. They have been consistent, beating some notable teams in the build-up to the tournament. Wins in the Pacific Four Series earlier this year against the USA, Australia and beating Italy and Fiji in the build-up games make them a serious threat to not just top this pool but potentially make the final.
The USA team has been building nicely towards this tournament. Wins in the Pacific Four Series against Australian, an eye-opening performance against New Zealand and a win against Scotland in the build-up game to the World Cup suggests they have enough talent to get out of the group and potentially go deep into the tournament.
Japan is the frightening team in this group. It all depends on which Japanese team turns up on the day as to what type of performance you will get from them. Japan have beaten South Africa and Ireland this year, but also lost badly to Ireland and New Zealand put a cricket score on them in their recent game at Eden Park. So, it is a matter of wait and see with Japan.
Italy rounds off the group and I am not sure what to make of them. Their season started well enough with good wins in the Six Nations against Scotland and Wales, however heavy defeats to France, England and Ireland suggest that when Italy meet well organized teams they will crumble under the pressure.
I expect Canada and the USA to fight it out for top place in this group with Japan to finish third.
Pool C is by far the toughest group in the competition. The group is made up of England, France, South Africa, and Fiji.
This group maybe tough but this is England’s World Cup to lose. The team are on a 24-game winning streak, ranked No. 1 in the world and go into the tournament as red-hot favorites.
France will put up a fight to England in this group and will want to make their own mark as they have been playing second fiddle to them in the Six Nations for the last four years. I expect France to go deep into the tournament and should avoid playing England en route to the final.
The South African team will need to step up their performances in the pool games if they are to get out of this group. The team has had some good wins against Japan and Spain in their lead up games but a loss at home to Japan and wins against Spain mean more consistency in their performances will be needed to threaten England or France.
The Fijian team have been going through a brutal training regime in preparation for the World Cup. This is the team’s first appearance at the Women’s World Cup, and I get the feeling that they are not a team to be taken lightly. They have brought in a lot of their top line 7s rugby players and if this team clicks their combinations together then look out.
I expect England and France to top the group with Fiji to finish in third.
Looking into my crystal ball as to who the winner will be, well, I happen to see an England vs. Canada Final, with England ultimately taking the prize. I think the real winner from this tournament will be the women’s rugby game itself. I expect teams like the USA, Fiji Wales, Scotland and Japan to create some possible surprises along the way.
This World Cup really feels like the end of an era for the women’s game as we know it and the start of a bright professional future for the game.
Look out for my weekly match reports in the Irish Examiner USA during the tournament and some behind the scenes stories as I will be attending the quarterfinals and the final itself.
Good Luck to the USA and Canadian teams!