England v Canada: Sophie de Goede's World Cup Final Blues
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Canada captain still loses sleep over final loss
Image source: Getty Images
Image caption: De Goede's Canada side were beaten 33-13 by England in the 2025 World Cup final
By Sara Orchard, Rugby union commentator
Published 4 hours ago
It has been nearly a year since Canada lost the Women's Rugby World Cup final to England, but Sophie de Goede, their captain, still finds it hard to sleep.
"Four to five nights a week I can't fall asleep because I'm still thinking about the final," she reveals.
So is this weekend's rematch in Exeter about revenge?
Canada head coach Kevin Rouet plays down the notion: "Revenge is a good brand but they [England] won the final of the World Cup - that was the most important game to win, the next important games will be in the World Cup 2029."
After facing England, Canada will play New Zealand and two more tests against England in Toronto and Ottawa. In recent history, England's women have not faced such strong opposition in quick succession.
Red Roses head coach John Mitchell describes these games as "an audition" for the 2029 World Cup, highlighting the challenge of covering different facilities and geographical locations.
Canada: Professional or Not?
There is a misconception that Canadian women are not professional athletes; while they receive athletic contracts, they do not yet match England's level.
The Canadian programme cleverly uses England's domestic PWR league to develop its players. 25 Canadians currently play in PWR, and several members of the Canada coaching staff, including Kevin Rouet and Alex Austerberry (Saracens Women) and Nathan Smith (Loughborough Lightning), are also involved.
De Goede clarifies: "It's not like we're coming in to spy. We just don't have the quality league [in Canada]."
PWR and English Qualified Players
Mitchell has previously argued that players who accumulate 1,000 PWR playing minutes a season have a higher chance of representing England. He and Charlie Hayter, head of women's performance at England Rugby, have proposed increasing game time for English Qualified Players (EQP) from next season.
The RFU confirmed to BBC Sport that the current requirement for an average of 13 EQP players on matchday squads will remain, but the allure of signing foreign talent may be reduced due to the removal of club injury credit.