England 38 - 19 France: Red Roses Dominant in Six Try Triumph over Les Bleus in Gloucester

This was an important Test in all matters of the word for John Mitchell's team, as they found their top gear, heading in next week's fixture against the Black Ferns, and before jetting out to Canada for a trio of matches in WXV1.

France had the overwhelming majority of attacking field possession for the first 10 minutes, but it was England who managed to strike first over the try line. The move started from an electric line-break from high-flying Harlequin Ellie Kildunne, who wheeled around the outside of the French back-line.

Kildunne then shipped the ball wide to Jess Breach out on the left wing, with the Saracens star fired downfield. The wing was halted close to the try line, with England captain Marlie Packer on hand to take control of the ball, and muscle her way over the try-line with drive from close range. The opening score was well converted by Holly Aitchison, as the Red Roses established a seven point lead.

The pendulum of momentum swung in England's favour, as the Red Roses gained steady traction into the French half. The second try of the afternoon was once again started by Kildunne, with the Great Britain Sevens star not missing a beat upon her return to the 15-a-side game.

Kildunne's searching break along the right wing was halted by a trio of blue shirts, with the ball promptly shipped back in-field towards Maddie Feaunati. The Exeter flanker threw a neat half-step to evade the first tackler, and sent a lovely pass out wide to Jess Breach, and the try-line beckoned for the wing. It went from bad to worse for France, as hooker Agathe Sochat was sent to the sin bin for deliberately knocking the ball out of Natasha Hunt's hands at the back of a breakdown.

England would immediately capitalise upon the extra player advantage, and were over for their third try of the first half. The Red Roses set-up a rolling maul from the line-out, but opted against pushing over their tried and tested method of attack. Instead, Hunt shipped the ball to a cascading Tatyana Heard, with the centre popping off the offload to her new-found midfield partner Helena Rowland, who weaved her way to score under the posts. Aitchison's conversion extended England's lead to 19-0 at the break.

England went to their well rehearsed playbook for their fourth try, as John Mitchell's side played the hits at Kingsholm. The Red Roses were awarded a penalty three minutes after the break, and Holly Aitchison sent an inch-perfect kick to touch for the set-piece. Packer got her hands on the ball at the back of the pack, as the forwards forced France back beyond their try-line for the score.

England's four unanswered scores finally saw a retaliation, as France opened their account with a try just two minutes later. Upon returning from the sin bin, Sochat collected the ball on England's 5m line at the back of a maul, faked to pass to the backs, with Amy Cokayne sold by the dummy. Sochat shimmied her way past the England front row, before diving down for the try.

However, this slight resurgence of French attack was short-lived, as England extended their lead to 31-7 three minutes later. Following a massive shift from the centre field scrum, the ball was quickly flung wide to Breach, and the hot-stepping winger evaded the tackle attempt from Cyrielle Banet to score her second try in the corner.

Amongst all the discussion around England's forward pack strength, France gave the Red Roses a taste of their own capabilities up front. Les Bleus shunted England back beyond their own try-line with a monstrous scrum, with the loose ball dove upon by number eight Romane Menager, to narrow down the deficit to 31-14 at the hour mark.

A third try was then added under the Packer name, yet it was not the England captain who grabbed a hat-trick. Shortly after coming off the bench for Hunt, Lucy Packer commanded her troops forward, with Emily Scarratt and Alex Matthews both halted close to the try-line. Packer's wherewithal to spot the smallest gap played dividends, as the halfback sniped at the back of a ruck, and added another five-pointer from close range. Aitchison's conversion brought up a 36-14 lead to the Red Roses.

The yo-yoing continued from a scoring perspective, as replacement back Pauline Bourdon Sansus scored a stunning solo try. The halfback picked up a loose ball on the England 22m, and darted her way along the left touchline, with the fatiguing red Roses unable to keep up with the supercharged Stade Toulousain scrum half. Despite having just conceded the England fans then erupted in support, as replacement lock Lilli Ives Campion made her Test debut with 10 minutes remaining.

TRIES: 6 (M. Packer 10', 43', Breach 17' 48', Rowland 21', L. Packer 66')

CONVERSIONS: 4 (Aitchison 10', 21', 43', 66')

PENALTIES: 0

DROP GOALS: 0

YELLOW CARDS: 0

RED CARDS: 0

15. Ellie Kildunne 14. Abby Dow 13. Helena Rowland 12. Tatyana Heard 11. Jess Breach 10. Holly Aitchison 9. Natasha Hunt 1. Hannah Botterman 2. Amy Cokayne 3. Maud Muir 4. Zoe Aldcroft 5. Morwenna Talling 6. Maddie Feaunati 7. Marlie Packer (C) 8. Alex Matthews

REPLACEMENTS: 16. Lark Atkin-Davies 17. Mackenzie Carson 18. Sarah Bern 19. Lilli Ives Campion 20. Poppy Cleall 21. Lucy Packer 22. Zoe Harrison 23. Emily Scarratt

TRIES: 3 (Sochat 46', Menager 60', Sansus 70')

CONVERSIONS: 2 (Tuy 46', 60')

PENALTIES: 0

DROP GOALS: 0

YELLOW CARDS: 1 (Sochat 21')

RED CARDS: 0

15. Chloe Jacquet 14. Cyrielle Banet 13. Nassira Konde 12. Marine Menager 11. Emile Boulard 10. Lina Tuy 9. Alexandra Chambon 1. Yllana Brosseau 2. Agathe Sochat 3. Assia Khalfaoui 4. Manae Feleu 5. Madoussou Fall 6. Charlotte Escudero 7. Emeline Gros 8. Romane Menager

REPLACEMENTS: 16. Manon Bigot 17. Ambre Mwayembe 18. Rose Bernadou 19. Hina Ikahehgi 20. Seraphine Okemba 21. Teani Feleu 22. Pauline Bourdon Sansus 23. Gabrielle Vernier

There was a debutant amongst the ranks for the Red Roses, with Loughborough Lightning talent Lilli Ives Campion earning her first appearence for England. The lock is the former captain of the England U20 Women's team, and was called up by John Mitchell following the litany of England's second row injuries with Cath O'Donnell, Abby Ward and Rosie Galligan all missing this fixture against France.

Campion came off the bench to a thunderous ovation, with plenty of excitement around the newest face in the Red Roses set-up. The lock was only given 10 minutes to make her mark at Kinsgholm, which she took with a handful of solid carries and worked well around the park defensively too.

2. Maddie Feaunati shines on her first England start

One of the most talked about stars of the Red Roses squad, Maddie Feaunati earned her first start today for John Mitchell's side. Coming in to start in the injury absence of regular blindside flanker Saida Kebeya, Feaunati built upon her five previous England caps with her first run out from the off.

Feaunati worked excellently to assist Jess Breach's first try, as she shipped a nice flat pass wide to the explosive wing. Feaunati also had her own opportunity to stretch her legs and showcase her pace, as she broke away down field for a 31st minute break. But what captured the hearts and minds of England fans was Feaunati's tackling, with the hard-hitting Chief putting her body on the line time and again for the Red Roses, and looked like an example setting replacement for the vacant Kabeya.

3. Ellie Kildunne Returns for England after Olympic Sevens Duties with Team GB

Kingsholm gave Ellie Kildunne an immense ovation, when her name was read out over the speaker system in the England team announcement. Receiving as warm an ovation as any of the Gloucester-Hartpury home town heroes, the Red Roses fans were delighted to see Kildunne back in the white shirt, after her run with the Great Britain sevens team at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

Kildunne was immediately involved in the attacking action, with the Harlequin evidently delighted to be back in the Red Roses shirt. Kildunne's searching runs through the France defensive were integral to England's earlier scores, as she gained the Red Roses significant down-field territory ahead of Packer and Breach's first half scores.

A major area of contention this week in the England camp was the centres, with plenty of contenders to the vacant 13 jersey following Meg Jones' ankle injury. The Leicester Tigers star recently underwent surgery, after sustaining an injury in England training following her return from her run in the Great Britain Olympic Sevens squad.

John Mitchell had Tatyana Heard nailed on for 12, and opted for a returning Helena Rowland to take up the mantle as her midfield partner. Rowland's Loughborough teammate Emily Scarratt was amongst those suspected to take up the starting jersey, only to be named amongst the replacements. There was also no space in the match day squad for uncapped England camp hopeful Phoebe Murray, with the Bristol Bears centre left out this time around.

The new-found combination of Heard and Rowland took some gelling, with some defensive gaps exploited between them by the likes of Nassira Konde and Marine Menager. However the fresh midfield pairing combined for a first half score, as England were over for their third try of the dominant first 40 minutes. Heard found Rowland with an expertly weighted off-load, and the Loughborough legend dotted down under the posts.

5. Gloucester-Hartpury's Home Town Heroes star at 'Queensholm'

There were bountiful Cherry and White shirts in support today, with the home of the Premiership Women's Rugby champions in full voice behind the Red Roses. There were four Gloucester-Hartpury stars in the England squad, with Tatyana Heard, Maud Muir, Natasha Hunt and Zoe Aldcroft all having stand-out performances on home soil.

The Player of the Match award was dutifully awarded to Tatyana Heard, with the centre showcasing her bruising ability to carry through defenders, as well as distribute the play with impressive handling skills. Heard and Rowland made a nice midfield partnership for Mitchell to consider for WXV, with scrum half Natasha Hunt expertly supplying the ammunition to her Gloucester-Hartpury teammate.

In the pack, lock Zoe Aldcroft dominated the areal battle, with the towering second row rising high above the line to claim the sky as her territory. Aldcroft was tested by her opposite number, but was able to keep France captain Manae Feleu quiet at the breakdown. Also, Gloucester-Hartpury prop Maud Muir enjoyed a warm ovation from her home fans, having previously expressed her excitement of playing in front of a packed out Kingsholm 'shed'. Solid scrummaging and a tireless work rate, Muir deserved her applause upon her 55th minute exit.