England Women Face Australia Again at the Rugby League World Cup

England's women face Australia on Saturday 24 October in Perth, in the second round of the Women's Rugby League World Cup. The last time these two met, Australia won 90-4 in Las Vegas, and England's squad has changed a lot since.

Rugby league is the 13-a-side code. The attacking team gets six tackles to move the ball forward, and when the defence stops them, possession flips. Every set of six is a chance to gain ground, or to lose it.

That match in Las Vegas was played at Allegiant Stadium in March 2025, and it was billed as the first of a three-match Test series between the two nations. Australia scored 17 tries. Tamika Upton scored five of them, and Georgia Roche scored England's only try. BBC Sport reported that the result was a record defeat for England.

This time England have started the tournament well. They beat Wales 70-6 in their opener on Friday 16 October. Australia, who are co-hosts with New Zealand and Papua New Guinea, opened with a 40-0 win over Samoa. Australia's Jillaroos have won the previous three Women's World Cups, and they have lost only once since 2016.

England are ranked third in the world, and head coach Stuart Barrow has made changes. Only six players from the Las Vegas team are in the current World Cup squad.

There is also bad news for the squad. Jasmin Strange suffered a serious knee injury in training on Tuesday, and she has been ruled out of the rest of the tournament. Her absence will be felt, and the team will move on without her.

The match is at HBF Park in Perth, where kick-off is listed at 3pm local time. For England, it is a chance to test how far they have come since March 2025. For Australia, it is a chance to keep their own run going. Either way, it will show the gap between the two sides, or how small it has become.