BY JOHN DAVIDSON
England Women coach Stuart Barrow admitted he was surprised by the 64-0 scoreline as his side whipped France in Warrington.
In England’s first match since the World Cup, and his first since taking charge, the hosts flogged the French in a record victory.
“We’ve had a limited time together as a group and we’ve talked about stripping it back and being simple with the game plan,” Barrow said.
“The players executed it remarkably well. There’s room for improvement. The players went and executed our game plan and that’s a credit to them.
“The group’s a really good group, it’s really welcoming. Going forward as an England team there’s going to be lots of faces who want to join this squad.
“We didn’t come in expecting a 64-0 game. Last year we only beat them 32-10. The exposure to the World Cup and coming back in, and see what we can simply it, the scoreline has surprised me a little today.
“We want better competition internationally.”
Winger Leah Burke scored four tries in the one-side contest.
Barrow conceded he will aim to get his side playing more expansively in future matches.
“Today was about getting the girls back on the field and getting the processes right,” he said.
“We’ll look at how we can play a bit more expansive.”
England Women are hoping to secure an opponent to play in October, around the same time as when the men take on Tonga.
“The plan is we’ll be playing an autumn opposition around that Tonga series, opposition to be confirmed,” Barrow said.
“It’s important we get ready for that international at the end of the year. It could be Wales, it could be France. We’ll make a decision when get there.”
