Kelsey Clifford, Marlie Packer, Zoe Aldcroft, Claudia MacDonald (two), Abbie Ward, Lark Atkin-Davies, Abby Dow (two) score tries as Red Roses post dominant win vs Scotland in Saturday’s Women’s Six Nations at Welford Road; France earlier beat Italy to set up Grand Slam decider next week
Last Updated: 19/04/25 6:57pm
England’s Red Roses scored nine tries as they battered Scotland at Welford Road in the Women’s Six Nations
England’s Red Roses set up a Women’s Six Nations Grand Slam decider against France at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham after a 59-7 battering of Scotland at Welford Road in Leicester.
The first half proved immensely one-sided as the Red Roses scored more than a point a minute to get in 42-0 up at half-time after tries from prop Kelsey Clifford, flanker Marlie Packer, captain and back-row Zoe Aldcroft, wing Claudia MacDonald, lock Abbie Ward and hooker Lark Atkin-Davies.
The second period proved slower going for the hosts but MacDonald demonstrated her superb pace again to score once more, before opposite wing Abby Dow added two late tries.
Red Roses – Tries: Clifford (6), M Packer (17), Aldcroft (21), MacDonald (27, 50), Ward (34), Atkin-Davies (40+1), Dow (74, 79). Cons: Aitchison (7, 18, 22, 28, 35, 40+2, 51).
Scotland- Tries: Thomson (58). Cons: Nelson (59).
Scotland avoided being nilled when centre Lisa Thomson scored via a rolling maul before England’s final two scores, but it was a day to forget for Bryan Easson’s charges.
Red Roses captain Zoe Aldcroft was among the try scorers in Leicester
On a day when England’s scrum and maul roared forward with dominance all afternoon, John Mitchell’s side demonstrated their ruthless nature when placed in the 22 too as Scotland had little answer.
In the day’s earlier clash, France – having trailed at half-time – eventually ensured victory over Italy with two tries in the final three minutes, setting up a winner-takes-all clash in London next weekend.
MacDonald: ‘It’s starting to come together – the best is yet to come’
Player-of-the-match Claudia MacDonald said to BBC Sport:
“The best is always yet to come. We’re proud of that performance. I think it’s starting to come together. There is so much talent in this team. We get judged harshly for how we play but every time we come out, we put on such a good product we are proud of.
“When you look at the skill we’ve got from player one to probably player 40, the competition is immense.
“People say we need to get beaten; we get beaten in training all the time. We push each other to be better and have so much respect for each other. The talent we’ve got is amazing.”
Player-of-the-match MacDonald said afterwards ‘the best is yet to come’ from the Red Roses
England captain Zoe Aldcroft said to BBC Sport:
“There were moments that were world class in that performance. We still know we’ve got so much to work on as well, which is the exciting thing. We’re looking forward to next week and putting some effort into areas we can improve on.
“I think our maul can be a lot better, and the breakdown – we want to be ruthless in those areas. It’s about tweaking the fine details and being excellent in those areas.
“We know France are super physical, we’re expecting that next week. We know they like to offload, so hopefully we can stop them in those areas.”
What’s next?
England finish their 2025 Women’s Six Nations campaign seeking a historic fourth successive Grand Slam vs unbeaten France at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham next Saturday April 26 (4.45pm kick-off).
Red Roses’ Women’s Six Nations 2025 fixtures
| Sunday, March 23 | Red Roses 38-5 Italy | |
| Saturday, March 29 | Wales 12-67 Red Roses | |
| Saturday, April 12 | Ireland 5-49 Red Roses | |
| Saturday, April 19 | Red Roses 59-7 Scotland | |
| Saturday, April 26 | Red Roses vs France | 4.45pm |
Scotland finish their campaign by hosting Ireland at Hive Stadium in Edinburgh next Saturday April 26 (2.30pm kick-off).
British & Irish Lions tour of Australia on Sky Sports
Watch the Lions tour of Australia live on Sky Sports in 2025
Sky Sports will exclusively show the 2025 British and Irish Lions tour of Australia, with all three Tests against the Wallabies and six warm-up matches to be shown exclusively live.
British and Irish Lions 2025 tour schedule
| Date | Opponent | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| Friday, June 20 | Argentina | Dublin |
| Saturday, June 28 | Western Force | Perth |
| Wednesday, July 2 | Queensland Reds | Brisbane |
| Saturday, July 5 | NSW Warratahs | Sydney |
| Wednesday, July 9 | ACT Brumbies | Canberra |
| Saturday, July 12 | Invitational AU-NZ | Adelaide |
| Saturday, July 19 | AUSTRALIA (first Test) | Brisbane |
| Wednesday, July 22 | First Nations & Pasifika XV | Melbourne |
| Saturday, July 26 | AUSTRALIA (second Test) | Melbourne |
| Saturday, August 2 | AUSTRALIA (third Test) | Sydney |
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