England men’s team may have failed to reach the World Cup final at Old Trafford but their female counterparts are still dreaming of going all the way. Shaun Wane’s side were condemned to a devastating 27-26 loss to Samoa at the Emirates to leave their head coach in tears.
But Craig Richards’ women’s side face New Zealand at York on Monday night where victory will carry them into Saturday’s final against Australia or Papua New Guinea. Captain Emily Rudge, inspired by the success of the England Lionesses in winning the Euros this summer, said: “It's been massively inspirational to see other England teams get success, especially getting a 'home' win with the Euros.
“That's definitely something that we want to replicate in this World Cup. Hopefully we can see some of the same benefits and it will inspire more people to get into the sport.”
Read more: James Tedesco expecting passionate start from Samoa as Australia smell blood
England centre Tara-Jane Stanley, 29, played youth football at Everton with Euro 2022 winner Alex Greenwood. This year's Woman of Steel then chose to focus on rugby league but followed her former team-mate and the Lionesses during the summer.
“It was great to support them, coming from a footballing background,” said Stanley, a keen Liverpool FC supporter. Seeing what they did in the summer, we definitely want to embrace the opportunity to keep the ball rolling.
“Alex is such a humble person and knowing her from when she was younger, I know how much hard graft she put in. To see her finally succeed in what she wanted to do from such a young age was great to see and really inspirational.
“Some may say there's a bit of pressure on our shoulders, especially with the Red Roses being so successful and the Lionesses in the summer, but we're really just enjoying the moment and enjoying the World Cup, and we're really looking forward to Monday's game.”
Richards has made just one change to his squad after Wednesday's 42-4 win against Papua New Guinea. Wigan Warriors forward Vicky Molyneux missed England's final group game against PNG, but returns in place of Carrie Roberts. Molyneux was named player of the match in England's dominant 54-4 Group A victory against Canada.
Read next
Phil Gould believes England's defeat to Samoa should have been decided by different method
Three Australia standouts for Samoa to watch out for in Rugby League World Cup final
England suffer golden point heartache as Samoa secure Rugby League World Cup Final spot
Samoa's Junior Paulo avoids red card after ugly spear tackle sparks debate
England player ratings as incredible Elliott Whitehead performance not enough in semi-final
