Hat-trick hero Amy Hardcastle hailed the Headingley atmosphere as England got their women’s Rugby League World Cup campaign off to a dominant start with a 72-4 win over Brazil.
Hundreds of schoolchildren swelled an impressive Tuesday afternoon crowd of 8,621 – comfortably the biggest for a women’s rugby league game in the northern hemisphere – and saw the hosts run in 14 tries to the backdrop of a six-piece samba band on the South Stand terrace.
