England crush Wales 70-6 in Women's World Cup debut

England delivered a dominant performance to defeat Women's World Cup debutants Wales 70-6 in their Group A opener in Perth. The match started with a stunning moment of shock when Paige Travis bundled over the try line within the opening 10 minutes, capitalising on uncharacteristic English errors to put Wales briefly on the dream run.

However, conceding early only served to refocus Stu Barrow's England side, who are targeting their first-ever World Cup final appearance. England quickly shifted gears, running in seven tries before the half-time whistle to establish a commanding 40-6 lead, sparked by Amelia Brown's opener and supported by scores from Georgia Wilson, Hollie-Mae Dodd, and Connie Boyd.

The relentless scoring continued after the break. Winger Anna Davies and debutant Connie Boyd both secured hat-tricks, while Izzy Rowe added two tries and kicked nine conversions for a personal haul of 26 points, matching the record for the most points by an individual England player in a World Cup match.

Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event

Further misery was piled on Wales when Amelia Brown chased down a chipped kick near her own try line and raced 109 metres up the pitch to score one of the longest-range tries in women's rugby league history, effectively extinguishing any hopes of a Welsh comeback.

Source: BBC Sport