Winfield-Hill hat-trick helps England to big win over Brazil
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Former cricket star Courtney Winfield-Hill scored a rugby league hat-trick as England opened their World Cup campaign with a 72-4 win against Brazil before a record crowd at Headingley Stadium.
The Australian-born playmaker, who played cricket for Queensland Fire and Brisbane Heat, earned player of the match honours for England after crossing for back-to-back first half tries and scoring just before halftime.
The 35-year-old Leeds Rhinos captain and halfback, who played for Sydney Roosters in the 2020 NRL Nines, is married to English cricketer Lauren Winfield and qualifies for her adopted nation on residency grounds.
"It’s an incredibly special day, not so much for the tries but my family have flown from Australia and I have all of my fellow players and colleagues here. This is really special for me today," Winfield-Hill said.
"The atmosphere was excellent, the kids’ volume was terrific and the south stand drummers going off. And the Brazilian tunes, I was even having a little jig there at one point. It’s just a wonderful atmosphere and this is what all the girls dream about."
England centre Amy Hardcastle also scored three tries, while Tara-Jane Stanley finished with a 24-point haul from two tries and eight goals.
Cheered on by the biggest attendance for a women's rugby league match in the Northern Hemisphere of 8621, England were too strong for a Brazil side comprising largely of players with backgrounds in other sporting codes.
Winfield-Hill the hat-trick hero
However, the Amazonas never gave up and were finally rewarded for their efforts when fullback Natalia Momberg crossed for the South American nation's first try in the 58th minute.
Match: England v Brazil
Round 1 -
home Team
England
away Team
Brazil
Venue: Emerald Headingley Stadium, Leeds
Match snapshot
- England winger Caitlin Beavers became the first try scorer in the women's World Cup when she crossed for the opening try in the second minute after five-eighth Georgia Roache exploited an overlap.
Hard-running Hardcastle
- England centre Tara-Jane Stanley was the next to cross in the fifth minute as the Amazonas struggled to adapt to the early pace of the game.
- Winfield-Hill crossed for the first of her two tries when she stepped her way through the defence to score in the 15th minute and she was in again six minutes later.
- Prop Grace Field charged through the defence to score in the 27th minute before Hardcastle got the first of her three tries nine minutes later and a second Stanley try gave England a 34-0 lead at halftime.
- After regrouping at the interval, Brazil provided more resistance in the second half and trailed 44-4 midway in the 63rd minute after fullback Natalia Momberg scored an historic first World Cup try for the Amazonas.
Brazil makes history
- Hooker Tara Jones, Hardcastle, winger Leah Burke, Winfield-Hill and Olivia Wood completed the scoring for England.
What they said
"The game tells us there’s a bit to work on. It showed the girls have worked hard because the energy to keep going was fantastic. The sky’s the limit with this team but we need to keep going and keep improving week on week. A big shout out to Brazil, I thought they were fantastic and kept going. We’ll tidy up in one or two areas, but I’m absolutely thrilled to bits with that performance," - England coach Craig Richards.
“I can’t say I’m disappointed I’m very happy with the girls, they put it all in. We made some errors and England spotted early on we had an issue with the edge, but we’ll repair that. France gave us a good warm-up, but England were definitely next level, they were very good so hats off to them. A lot of the girls play in sevens and are used to scramble defence, more than organised defence, but that will come with time and experience. We’ll work hard in those defensive areas and improve," - Brazil coach Paul Grundy
What's Next
England play Canada at Wigan's DW Stadium on Sunday (AEST) before the host nation's men's side take on Papua New Guinea for a semi-final berth.
The double-header will be attended by the Princess of Wales, who is the RFL's Royal Patron.
"With both our England Women and Men’s teams playing important World Cup matches on Saturday, her presence will enhance a special occasion for our sport, for the World Cup and for the famous rugby league town of Wigan," RFL chair Simon Johnson said.
England return to Headingley on November 10 to play the Papua New Guinea Orchids in a double-header with the Brazil-Canada match.
The Amazonas next game against Papua New Guinea is also the opening match in a double-header with the New Zealand-Fiji men's quarter-final in Hull on Sunday (AEST).
The top two teams from the pool will advance to the semi-finals with the top two teams from Group B, which comprises of Australia, Cook Islands, France and New Zealand.
