England beat Ireland in front of record Women's Six Nations crowd

TL;DR

England defeated Ireland 33-12 in the Women's Six Nations, achieving a record crowd attendance. The match featured tries from Cokayne, Bern, Breach, and Kildunne for England, while Ireland scored through McGann and King.

Women's Six Nations

England (21) 33

Tries: Cokayne, Bern 2, Breach, Kildunne Cons: Rowland 4

Ireland (0) 12

Tries: McGann, King Con: O'Brien

England opened their title defence with a comfortable win over Ireland in front of a record Women's Six Nations crowd of 77,120 at Allianz Stadium.

It was the Red Roses' first match since they became world champions in front of a record women's crowd of 81,885 at Allianz Stadium in September.

Hooker Amy Cokayne crossed for the opening try, with prop Sarah Bern grabbing two first-half scores.

Slick handling then put Ellie Kildunne clear, but unlike her brilliant solo try in the World Cup final, the full-back lost control when attempting to ground the ball in one hand.

Early in the second half, Jess Breach raced onto a kick through to expertly grab the important bonus-point try.

Ireland scored next through replacement Anna McGann, which was cancelled out by an excellent finish from Kildunne.

Captain Erin King bagged the final try of the game as the visitors avoided another heavy defeat by the Red Roses.

John Mitchell's side, who are on a record 34-game winning run, are seeking an eighth straight Six Nations title and fifth Grand Slam in a row.

England will now face Scotland (13:30 BST) at Murrayfield next Saturday, while Ireland host Italy (17:40 BST) in Galway later that day.

More to follow.

Line-ups

England: Kildunne; Breach, Jones (capt), Rowland, Moloney-MacDonald; Aitchison, L Packer; Clifford, Cokayne, Bern, Talling, Ives Campion, Feaunati, Kabeya, Matthews.

Replacements: Powell, Carson, Muir, Lutui, Burton, Hunt, Harrison, Sing.

Ireland: Flood; Parsons, Dalton, Higgins, Elmes Kinlan; O'Brien, Lane; Perry, Moloney-Macdonald, Djougang, Wall, Tuite, Hogan, King (capt), Wafer.

Replacements: Jones, O'Dowd, Cahill, Campbell, Moore, Whelan, McGillivray, McGann.

Match officials

Referee: Clara Munarini (Italy)

Assistant referees: Amber Stamp-Dunstan (Wales) and Berenice Loubet (France)

Television Match Official (TMO): Estelle Whaiapu (New Zealand)

Share this article

Q&A

What was the final score of the England vs Ireland Women's Six Nations match?

England won the match against Ireland with a final score of 33-12.

Who scored tries for England in the Women's Six Nations match against Ireland?

England's tries were scored by Cokayne, Bern (2), Breach, and Kildunne.

What was significant about the crowd at the Women's Six Nations match between England and Ireland?

The match set a record for the highest attendance at a Women's Six Nations game.

England beat Ireland in front of record Women's Six Nations crowd