Red Roses suffer first back-to-back defeats since 2016 as Canada win again in Ottawa

The Red Roses have lost back-to-back Test matches for the first time since 2016 after a 31-22 defeat to Canada in Ottawa. It came a week after Canada had ended England’s 41-match unbeaten run in Toronto.

Captain Meg Jones insisted afterwards that the world champions are “not broken”, but the result confirms Canada as genuine rivals for John Mitchell’s side.

How Canada beat the Red Roses in Ottawa

Maddie Feaunati opened the scoring for England at TD Place Stadium, but Canada hit back twice to take the lead. Zoe Harrison’s penalty cut the gap early in the second half, before three more Canada tries put the game out of reach despite a late Amy Cokayne score.

Sophie de Goede, Julia Omokhuale, DaLeaka Menin and Savannah Bauder all crossed for Canada, who finished the three-match series unbeaten against England.

Three games, no wins for the Red Roses against Canada

The Red Roses played Canada three times in six weeks as part of the WXV Global Series and did not win any of them:

• England 26-26 Canada, Sandy Park, Exeter (19 September)
• Canada 24-21 England, Toronto (16 October)
• Canada 31-22 England, Ottawa (23 October)

The defeat in Toronto ended an unbeaten run that stretched back to the 2021 Rugby World Cup final. England had beaten Canada 14 times in a row before this series.

Meg Jones: ‘We’re not broken’

“We just needed to respond a bit better,” Jones said at full-time, as reported by RugbyPass. “We’re not broken. We just need to grow from it.”

Jones remained defiant in the post-match news conference, insisting England still have the best players in the world. She also pointed to the benefit of playing in front of big, partisan crowds ahead of the 2029 World Cup in Australia.

When do the Red Roses play next?

The Red Roses finish their WXV Global Series campaign against the USA in New Jersey on Friday 30 October, with kick-off at 9.15pm GMT, according to England Rugby.

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