England U18s Women have confirmed two sides for their annual internal fixture, which is set to take place this coming Saturday December 2nd. Head Coach James Cooper has named the two match day squads, that feature the most promising age grade talents from across the country.
The two squads are set to meet in the Warwick School, for the training match that will feature four 20-minute quarters. These breaks will enable in-game analysis, with rolling substitutions ensuring that all 46 players get a strong share of game time.
England’s U18 Women will then build further into their season with two camps at the University of Nottingham, either side of the new year. These camps take place across the weekends of December 16th 2023 and and January 13th 2024.
The 2023/24 campaign kick-started with the Malvern Festival for the U18 sides across the men’s and women’s England Pathway. Cooper’s set-up continued with regional camps across August and October before a three-day meeting at Warwick School in the October half-term.
In what is already the fourth meeting of the U18 Women unit this term, Cooper and his management team have the opportunity to trial tactical gameplans during match scenarios and assess different combinations across the matchday squads.
With the team’s preparations steadily progressing, Cooper highlighted the importance of this weekend’s Warwick training camp.
“We’re delighted to reintroduce our internal game this year to a new lineup of girls, having spoken to some of them ahead of the weekend the excitement is palpable which only adds to the occasion
“I’d like to thank the staff and the players for their persistent work ethic so far this season, we’ve had a lot of opportunities to work with the best talents in the country and for that, we’re very grateful.
“There were some really tough selection calls ahead of this weekend, but as previous years have shown, this is now not a closed door and there are still opportunities for players to be seen and be involved due to different development rates amongst our team.
“We have the privilege of welcoming back 11 players who have pulled on the jersey for their country in recent times and we’re looking forward to seeing how they develop alongside new teammates on Saturday.”
England U18 Women’s squads for the 2023 Internal Game (including England Rugby Centre of Excellence site and college)
Kaya Acton (Yorkshire, Bishop Burton)
Ashton Adcock (Loughborough Lightning, Loughborough College)
Lauren Bailey (Bristol Bears, Hartpury College) *
Grace Banks (Sale Sharks, Wigan & Leigh College)
Emma Blackburn (Harlequins, Worthing College)
Gabriella Brown (Harlequins, Maidstone Grammar)
Emily Chieza (Thames Valley, City of Oxford College)
Katherine Dyke (Bristol Bears, Exeter College)
Zara Green (Harlequins, Newman College (Hove))
Evie Haskell (Loughborough Lightning) *
Amy Henwood (Harlequins, Epsom College)
Rebecca Jackson (Gloucester-Hartpury, Hartpury College)
Aisha Jah (Loughborough Lightning, West Notts Sixth Form College)
Hayley Jones (Thames Valley, Henley College)
Emily Lunn (Harlequins, Henley College)
Haineala Lutui (Worcester, RGS Worcester) *
Freya McGinlay (Gloucester-Hartpury, Hartpury College)
Maddy Page (Thames Valley, City of Oxford College)
Sarah Parry (Worcester, Hereford Sixth Form College) *
Felicity Poole (Harlequins, Worthing College)
Tilly Pulfer (Exeter Chiefs, Exeter College)
Solana Shaw de Leon (Harlequins, Worthing College)
Lucy Simpson (Gloucester-Hartpury, Hartpury College) *
*denotes a player capped at 15s or sevens pathway level
Daisy Aspinall (Gloucester-Hartpury, Hartpury College) *
Iley Bailey (Harlequins, Henley College)
Tamsin Baynes (Loughborough Lightning, Loughborough College)
Molly Bunker (Harlequins, Hartpury College)
Bethan Candlin (Yorkshire, Loughborough College)
Natalee Evans (Worcester, Hereford Sixth Form College) *
Mary Flanagan (Bristol Bears, Kings of Wessex Cheddar Sixth Form)
Charlotte Heath (Exeter Chiefs, Exeter College)
Lydia Humphries (Sale Sharks, Rainhill Sixth Form)
Sophia Macdonald (Harlequins, Cardinal Newman)
Poppy Murray (Saracens, Oaklands School)
Heidi Pashaei Tarighoun (Bristol Bears, South Gloucestershire and Stroud College) *
Milly Pearce (Thames Valley, City of Oxford College) *
Abigail Pritchard (Gloucester-Hartpury, Hartpury College)
Lily Relton (Exeter Chiefs, Truro College)
Lucie Sams (Sale Sharks, Carmel College St. Helens) *
Eryn Sinckler-Bermingham (Harlequins, Hartpury College) *
Grace Strickland (Saracens, Saffron Walden County High)
Isabel Trott (Loughborough Lightning, Loughborough College)
Isabel van der Straaten (Saracens)
Catherine Welman (Saracens, St Benedict’s Catholic Sixth Form)
Ellie Wilson (Gloucester-Hartpury, Hartpury College)
Ruby Winstanley (Harlequins, The Farnborough Sixth Form)
*denotes a player capped at 15s or sevens pathway level