England clinched a record-extending eighth consecutive Women’s Six Nations title and a fifth successive Grand Slam with a 43–28 victory over France in front of a record crowd at Stade Atlantique in Bordeaux. Player of the match Ellie Kildunne scored twice as the Red Roses extended their world-record winning streak to 38 Tests.

Key moments

0–10 mins – FRANCE DOMINANCE: France enjoy 92% territory in the opening exchanges, pinning England in their own half. Three early penalties against England — Meg Jones, Jess Breach and Sadia Kabeya all caught offside — but Les Bleues fail to convert their dominance into points.

13 mins – TRY FRANCE: Coast-to-coast magic from Les Bleues! England win a turnover near the French line but France whip the ball back and run it from deep. Léa Murie makes a decisive 30-metre break down the left, finds Léa Champon who pops to Pauline Bourdon Sansus — the only survivor from France’s last win over England in 2018 — to score. Carla Arbez converts. (France 7–0 England)

20 mins – LINEOUT CHAOS: France execute a 50/22 but Mathilde Lazarko overthrows the lineout. England pounce — Claudia Moloney-MacDonald races 40 metres up the left and the visitors are suddenly in French territory.

22 mins – TRY ENGLAND: Patient build-up from England. Phase after phase on France’s line before prop Sarah Bern bounces off one defender and burrows over for her fifth try of the tournament. Zoe Harrison converts. (France 7–7 England)

28 mins – TURNOVER, TRY: France spill possession — Madoussou Fall Raclot turned over — and Meg Jones hacks the loose ball forward. Full-back Ellie Kildunne is first to it and jogs over under the posts. Harrison converts. Against the run of play, England lead. (France 7–14 England)

36 mins – TRY ENGLAND: England win a penalty from scrum dominance and kick for the corner. The lineout is secured and the backs shift the ball rapidly from left to right. Jess Breach gathers a looping pass, evades Léa Murie’s tackle, and dives over in the corner. Harrison converts brilliantly from the touchline. (France 7–21 England)

40+1 mins – TRY ENGLAND: The clock is in the red but England want more. Helena Rowland’s kick puts them deep in French territory and they work the overlap on the left. Kildunne collects a looping ball with space to spare and walks in for her second try of the game — bonus point secured. Harrison misses the conversion. (France 7–26 England)

Half-time: France 7–26 England. France dominated territory early but poor set pieces and handling errors proved costly. England scored four tries in the second quarter to take control. Les Bleues lost the lineout four times from eight throws.

42 mins – PENALTY ENGLAND: Early second-half gift as Madoussou Fall Raclot is penalised for a tackle off the ball. Harrison slots the penalty. (France 7–29 England)

48 mins – FRANCE CHANGES: Charlotte Escudero and Kiara Zago on for Axelle Berthoumieu and Siobhan Soqeta. France win a scrum 10 metres out — pressure building.

49 mins – GRANDO SPILLS IT: Pauline Barrat flings the ball wide towards Anaïs Grando in acres of space… but she spills it with the try line at her mercy. When it’s not your day…

54 mins – TRY FRANCE: Patience this time from Les Bleues. Ten phases of pressure on the goal line before Arbez shovels it wide right to Aubane Rousset who finds Grando — redemption! She makes no mistake with her second chance. Arbez converts. (France 14–29 England)

55 mins – FRANCE CHANGES: Props Rose Bernadou and Yllana Brosseau on for Assia Khalfaoui and Ambre Mwayembe.

57 mins – ROUSSET BREAK: What a run from Aubane Rousset! She cuts through England’s defence and takes France to within 10 metres of the line. France hammer away — held up over the line! Five-metre scrum.

59 mins – TRY FRANCE: Simple and devastating. Ball in and out quickly from the scrum, Bourdon Sansus puts her head down and sprints over from seven metres. England caught waiting for the push. Arbez converts. France are within eight points! (France 21–29 England)

60 mins – PACKER ON: Time to get serious. Marlie Packer — seven tries in the tournament — replaces Abi Burton in England’s back row.

62 mins – FEAUNATI INJURY CONCERN: Play stopped as Maddie Feaunati goes down holding her leg. She missed the Italy game with a leg injury. Thankfully, she continues.

64 mins – TRY ENGLAND: Crucial response! First-phase move from the scrum — Harrison wraps around and dishes it to Kildunne, who holds up brilliantly before releasing Jess Breach on the outside. She streaks away for a 30-metre run to the corner — two tries for Breach. Harrison slams over another touchline conversion. (France 21–36 England)

66 mins – FRANCE CHANGES: Pauline Bourdon Sansus and Carla Arbez off. Alexandra Chambon and Lina Queyroi on.

71 mins – YELLOW CARD FRANCE: Alexandra Chambon, just on, commits a high tackle on Moloney-MacDonald — head-on-head contact. Yellow card. France will play out the match with 14. Maddie Feaunati replaced by Demelza Short.

75–76 mins – ENGLAND PRESSURE: England drive at the line repeatedly from a lineout. Marlie Packer goes… held up! France’s defence is heroic. But advantage was being played for side entry — England reset from the penalty.

77 mins – TRY ENGLAND: That seals it. Lilli Ives Campion takes the lineout cleanly and drops it down to Marlie Packer, who spins to the blindside and creates a two-on-one before feeding Amy Cokayne. The hooker slams it down in the corner — her sixth try of the tournament. Harrison converts. (France 21–43 England)

78 mins – ENGLAND CHANGES: The party can begin. Connie Powell, Liz Crake, Holly Aitchison, Flo Robinson and Emma Sing all on.

80 mins – TRY FRANCE: Consolation bonus point for Les Bleues. Pauline Barrat makes a break before Rose Bernadou bounces off two defenders and muscles over. Lina Queyroi converts. Too little, too late but the French fans have something to cheer. (France 28–43 England)

Full-time: France 28–43 England

Full match report to follow.

Teams

France: 15 Pauline Barrat, 14 Anaïs Grando, 13 Aubane Rousset, 12 Téani Feleu, 11 Léa Murie; 10 Carla Arbez, 9 Pauline Bourdon Sansus; 1 Ambre Mwayembe, 2 Mathilde Lazarko, 3 Assia Khalfaoui, 4 Siobhan Soqeta, 5 Madoussou Fall Raclot, 6 Axelle Berthoumieu, 7 Manae Feleu (c), 8 Léa Champon.
Replacements: 16 Elisa Riffonneau, 17 Yllana Brosseau, 18 Rose Bernadou, 19 Kiara Zago, 20 Cloé Correa, 21 Charlotte Escudero, 22 Alexandra Chambon, 23 Lina Queyroi.

England: 15 Ellie Kildunne, 14 Jess Breach, 13 Megan Jones (c), 12 Helena Rowland, 11 Claudia Moloney-MacDonald; 10 Zoe Harrison, 9 Lucy Packer; 1 Mackenzie Carson, 2 Amy Cokayne, 3 Sarah Bern, 4 Lilli Ives Campion, 5 Delaney Burns, 6 Abi Burton, 7 Sadia Kabeya, 8 Maddie Feaunati.
Replacements: 16 Connie Powell, 17 Liz Crake, 18 Maud Muir, 19 Demelza Short, 20 Marlie Packer, 21 Flo Robinson, 22 Holly Aitchison, 23 Emma Sing.

Match details

France 28 (Tries: Bourdon Sansus 2, Grando, Bernadou; Conversions: Arbez 2/3, Queyroi 1/1)
England 43 (Tries: Bern, Kildunne 2, Breach 2, Cokayne; Conversions: Harrison 5/6; Penalties: Harrison 1/1)
Half-time: 7–26
Player of the match: Ellie Kildunne (England)

Venue: Stade Atlantique, Bordeaux
Attendance: 35,062 (Women’s Six Nations record for France)
Referee: Clara Munarini (Italy)

Tournament context

England’s victory extends their world-record winning streak to 38 consecutive Tests, dating back to the 2022 World Cup final. They haven’t lost in the Women’s Six Nations since March 2018 — 39 matches ago. John Mitchell remains unbeaten as England head coach since taking over in late 2023.

This was England’s most challenging Six Nations campaign in the Mitchell era, with 13 players unavailable from the forward pack alone due to pregnancies and injuries. Captain Zoe Stratford, Abbie Ward, Rosie Galligan and Lark Atkin-Davies all missed the tournament through pregnancy, while Hannah Botterman, May Campbell, Tatyana Heard, Alex Matthews, Natasha Hunt and Morwenna Talling were ruled out through injury. Five players made their debuts during the championship.

France’s wait for a first Women’s Six Nations title since 2018 goes on. They have now lost 18 consecutive meetings with England.

Ireland produced a scintillating first-half display to demolish Scotland 54–5 in front of a record crowd at Aviva Stadium, securing third place and completing an unbeaten home campaign on an historic day for Irish women’s rugby.

Key moments

3 mins – SCRUM DOMINANCE: Ireland destroy the Scottish scrum on the visitors’ own ball. Eve Higgins is nearly in and Ireland win a penalty. Scotland centre Meryl Smith goes off for an HIA and will not return — Lucia Scott replaces her.

5 mins – TRY IRELAND: Ireland go to the corner and the maul is unstoppable. Hooker Clíodhna Moloney-MacDonald is at the back to dot down for the opening try. Dannah O’Brien nails a difficult conversion. (Ireland 7–0 Scotland)

8 mins – TRY IRELAND: Scotland struggle to clear their lines with Helen Nelson under pressure — a clearance kick is partially blocked. Aoife Dalton barges up the middle and the ball is worked wide to Robyn O’Connor, who runs a perfect line to score. O’Brien converts. (Ireland 14–0 Scotland)

12 mins – WAFER MAKING METRES: Aoife Wafer makes a big carry and is well tackled by Shona Campbell. Ireland’s attack looks slick and they draw another penalty inside the 22. O’Brien kicks to the corner.

14 mins – TRY IRELAND: Clean lineout take and Ireland make yards with the maul before Wafer pops the ball back to Emily Lane. A couple of phases later, Brittany Hogan burrows over close to the posts. O’Brien converts. (Ireland 21–0 Scotland)

18 mins – TRY IRELAND: Bonus point secured inside 18 minutes! From the lineout, Linda Djougang makes a burst for the line and is stopped short. Captain Erin King is next up and drives over with help from her forwards. O’Brien’s conversion is just wide. (Ireland 26–0 Scotland)

28 mins – TRY DISALLOWED IRELAND: Moloney-MacDonald appears to score her second, but the TMO intervenes — the hooker was part of the ruck before she picked up the ball. Harsh call but no try.

30 mins – TRY IRELAND: Ireland don’t let the disallowed try deter them. Martin overthrows at the lineout and Moloney-MacDonald catches at the back, barging past defenders before being stopped just short. Wafer crashes over moments later. O’Brien converts. (Ireland 33–0 Scotland)

35 mins – TRY IRELAND: Scotland concede another penalty and O’Brien goes to the corner again. The maul is set, the ball goes through the hands, and Stacey Flood shows lovely footwork to dance through and dive over. O’Brien converts. (Ireland 40–0 Scotland)

39 mins – TRY IRELAND: The pick of the bunch! Scotland can’t deal with O’Brien’s garryowen and Robyn O’Connor dances around tackles on halfway before racing to the 22. She offloads to Wafer, who plays a ridiculous dummy on the full-back before swan-diving under the posts. O’Brien converts. (Ireland 47–0 Scotland)

Half-time: Ireland 47–0 Scotland. Utterly dominant from Ireland — seven tries, six conversions, 78% possession and 92% territory. Scotland didn’t enter the Irish 22 once in the entire first half. The record crowd of 31,294 were treated to a festival of rugby.

41 mins – RAIN ARRIVES: The heavens open at the Aviva Stadium as the second half begins. The conditions might even things up.

44 mins – KING TURNOVER: Scotland manage to put together phases for the first time in the match but captain Erin King wins a brilliant jackal penalty to relieve pressure.

49 mins – IRELAND BOMB SQUAD: Scott Bemand makes six changes — Neve Jones, Sadhbh McGrath, Eilís Cahill, Dorothy Wall, Ruth Campbell and Vicky Elmes-Kinlan all on.

54 mins – SCOTLAND CHANGES: Demi Swann, Aicha Sutcliffe and Coreen Grant come on for Scotland as they try to salvage something from the afternoon.

59 mins – TRY IRELAND: Ireland attack five metres out and force an offside penalty. They tap and after Cahill is stopped, Brittany Hogan drives over for her second with help from King and Wall. O’Brien converts to break the half-century. (Ireland 54–0 Scotland)

60 mins – PARSONS OFF: Béibhinn Parsons comes off with a knock — Niamh Gallagher on for her debut appearance in this match.

70 mins – ELMES-KINLAN TURNOVER: Lucia Scott makes a big break into the Ireland 22 but is stopped by a brilliant tackle from Vicky Elmes-Kinlan, who also wins the turnover. The crowd erupts.

77 mins – SCOTLAND IN THE 22: Scotland finally enter the Ireland 22 for only the second time all match. Captain King wins a huge penalty but Scotland have an advantage.

83 mins – YELLOW CARD IRELAND: Ruth Campbell is sent to the sin-bin after an accumulation of penalties. Scotland have one final chance.

85 mins – TRY SCOTLAND: Consolation at last! Hooker Aicha Sutcliffe powers over from a lineout maul for her second try in two matches and her first Test try. Helen Nelson’s conversion slides left. (Ireland 54–5 Scotland)

Full-time: Ireland 54–5 Scotland

Full match report to follow.

Teams

Ireland: 15 Stacey Flood, 14 Béibhinn Parsons, 13 Aoife Dalton, 12 Eve Higgins, 11 Robyn O’Connor; 10 Dannah O’Brien, 9 Emily Lane; 1 Ellena Perry, 2 Clíodhna Moloney-MacDonald, 3 Linda Djougang, 4 Sam Monaghan, 5 Fiona Tuite, 6 Brittany Hogan, 7 Erin King (c), 8 Aoife Wafer.
Replacements: 16 Neve Jones, 17 Sadhbh McGrath, 18 Eilís Cahill, 19 Dorothy Wall, 20 Ruth Campbell, 21 Katie Whelan, 22 Vicky Elmes-Kinlan, 23 Niamh Gallagher.

Scotland: 15 Chloe Rollie, 14 Rhona Lloyd, 13 Rachel Philipps, 12 Meryl Smith, 11 Shona Campbell; 10 Helen Nelson (c), 9 Leia Brebner-Holden; 1 Leah Bartlett, 2 Elis Martin, 3 Elliann Clarke, 4 Emma Wassell, 5 Louise McMillan, 6 Becky Boyd, 7 Eva Donaldson, 8 Emily Coubrough.
Replacements: 16 Aicha Sutcliffe, 17 Demi Swann, 18 Molly Poolman, 19 Hollie Cunningham, 20 Holland Bogan, 21 Rhea Clarke, 22 Lucia Scott, 23 Coreen Grant.

Match details

Ireland 54 (Tries: Moloney-MacDonald, R O’Connor, Hogan 2, King, Wafer 2, Flood; Conversions: O’Brien 7/8)
Scotland 5 (Tries: Sutcliffe; Conversions: Nelson 0/1)
Half-time: 47–0

Venue: Aviva Stadium, Dublin
Attendance: 31,294 (record for women’s rugby in Ireland)
Referee: Aurélie Groizeleau (France)

Player of the match: Aoife Wafer (Ireland) — 20 carries, 107 metres, 2 tries, 4 offloads

Italy finish the Women’s Six Nations in style with a 43–24 bonus-point victory over Wales at Cardiff Arms Park, condemning Sean Lynn’s side to a second consecutive whitewash and a record-extending 10th straight Six Nations defeat.

Key moments

3 mins – TRY ITALY: Nightmare start for Wales. Italy work the opening down the right with slick handling and full-back Vittoria Ostuni Minuzzi finishes in the corner. Michela Sillari misses the conversion. (Wales 0–5 Italy)

4 mins – SINGLETON OFF: Early injury concern for Wales as wing Seren Singleton is forced off. Nikita Prothero comes on.

9 mins – TRY WALES: Excellent response from the hosts. Big carry by flanker Jorja Aiono gets Wales into the 22 and they stay patient, working the ball left for centre Courtney Keight to cross. Terrific final pass from Lleucu George. Keira Bevan misses the conversion. (Wales 5–5 Italy)

12 mins – TRY ITALY: Wales shoot themselves in the foot. George looks to play territory with a grubber kick but it’s charged down by Francesca Granzotto, who gathers and races away from halfway. TMO checks for offside but the try stands. Sillari converts. (Wales 5–12 Italy)

23 mins – TRY WALES: Controversy in Cardiff! Lovely move puts Carys Cox running free but she appears to drop the ball in the act of grounding. The officials are happy there was no separation and the try is given. Bevan converts and it’s level again. (Wales 12–12 Italy)

26 mins – TRY ITALY: Wales aren’t level for long. It’s far too easy for Italy with wing Alyssa D’Incà going over down the right after offloads against passive defence. Centre Sillari provides the final pass. D’Incà misses her own conversion. (Wales 12–17 Italy)

37 mins – WALES SCRUM DOMINANCE: Huge scrum from Wales to win a penalty. George kicks to just outside the 22. Can they snatch the lead before the break?

39 mins – TRY WALES: Perfectly executed lineout drive! Hooker Kelsey Jones hits her jumper and guides the maul over the line — the result of training ground graft. Bevan adds the extras and Wales lead at the break. (Wales 19–17 Italy)

Half-time: Wales 19–17 Italy. Three tries apiece but Wales have the edge heading into the second half. They’ve not been behind at the break on home soil this championship. The next 10 minutes will be crucial — can they avoid the familiar second-half collapse?

47 mins – TRY ITALY: The Italians do what Wales did with the final play of the first half. The driving lineout goes over at a rate of knots — flanker Francesca Sgorbini gets the bonus-point try. Sillari misses the conversion. (Wales 19–22 Italy)

52 mins – TRY ITALY: Wales are worn down as Italy break away and carry hard. Full-back Ostuni Minuzzi goes over for her second. Sillari adds the extras and suddenly Wales are 10 points down. (Wales 19–29 Italy)

52 mins – WALES CHANGES: Props Maisie Davies and Natalia John come on to try and add energy up front. John wins her 50th cap.

57 mins – YELLOW CARD ITALY: Francesca Granzotto with a dangerous tip tackle on Seren Singleton. The wing is shown yellow. Has that opened the door for Wales?

64 mins – MORE WALES CHANGES: Molly Reardon replaces Kelsey Jones. Alisha Joyce on for Bryonie King. Hannah Dallavalle replaces Prothero.

68 mins – TRY ITALY: That’s the game. A break down the left ends with fly-half Veronica Madia going over. Sillari adds the extras — Italy are pulling away despite being down to 14. (Wales 19–36 Italy)

69 mins – ITALY CHANGES: Retiring lock Valeria Fedrighi leaves the field in her 72nd and final cap to a standing ovation. Emma Stevanin, Aura Muzzo, Beatrice Veronese and Alessandra Frangipani all on.

76 mins – TRY ITALY: Another Italy break into the 22 and D’Incà benefits from a kind bounce on a cross-kick to score her second. Sillari converts. (Wales 19–43 Italy)

79 mins – TRY WALES: Consolation bonus point for Wales. Full-back Kayleigh Powell shows nice footwork to go over down the right from George’s kick-pass. George misses the conversion. (Wales 24–43 Italy)

Full-time: Wales 24–43 Italy

Full match report to follow.

Teams

Wales: 15 Kayleigh Powell, 14 Seren Singleton, 13 Carys Cox, 12 Courtney Keight, 11 Jasmine Joyce; 10 Lleucu George, 9 Keira Bevan; 1 Gwenllian Pyrs, 2 Kelsey Jones, 3 Sisilia Tuipulotu, 4 Branwen Metcalfe, 5 Georgia Evans, 6 Jorja Aiono, 7 Beth Lewis (c), 8 Bryonie King.
Replacements: 16 Molly Reardon, 17 Maisie Davies, 18 Donna Rose, 19 Natalia John, 20 Alisha Joyce, 21 Seren Lockwood, 22 Hannah Dallavalle, 23 Nikita Prothero.

Italy: 15 Vittoria Ostuni Minuzzi, 14 Francesca Granzotto, 13 Michela Sillari, 12 Sara Mannini, 11 Alyssa D’Incà; 10 Veronica Madia, 9 Sofia Stefan; 1 Silvia Turani, 2 Vittoria Vecchini, 3 Gaia Maris, 4 Valeria Fedrighi, 5 Giordana Duca, 6 Francesca Sgorbini, 7 Alissa Ranuccini, 8 Elisa Giordano.
Replacements: 16 Chiara Cheli, 17 Vittoria Zanette, 18 Gaia Dosi, 19 Alessandra Frangipani, 20 Beatrice Veronese, 21 Alia Bitonci, 22 Emma Stevanin, 23 Aura Muzzo.

Match details

Wales 24 (Tries: Keight, Cox, K Jones, Powell; Conversions: Bevan 2/4)
Italy 43 (Tries: Ostuni Minuzzi 2, Granzotto, D’Incà 2, Sgorbini, Madia; Conversions: Sillari 4/7)
Half-time: 19–17

Venue: Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff
Referee: Maggie Cogger-Orr (New Zealand)