By now everyone should have caught their breath after the last weekend WXV Global Series 2026
No one can say they weren’t entertained by the action from around the world. Things took a turn for the worse on Friday night as Canada beat the Red Roses at BMO Field in Toronto. The result was quickly followed by a 56-12 victory for Australia and a massive 81-12 victory for the Black Ferns over France.
Let’s wrap up the weekend USA The Women’s Eagles extended their winning streak to four straight games with a 36-27 victory against Italy in Texas.
Here are all the talking points from the weekend…
Let’s talk about Toronto
Perhaps the biggest elephant in the room is Canada’s 24-21 win against the Red Roses in Toronto. If you’re late for that result, yes, England’s 41-match winning streak has ended.
BMO Field provided a raucous, unrelenting home venue for Kévin Rouet’s team. From the moment the teams entered the hall, it was clear that there was a different feeling for both teams. England walked through the almost silent crowd. In contrast, Canada was greeted with cheers and red flares. During the game, England manager John Mitchell claimed that he was finding it difficult to communicate with his coaching staff, such was the noise.
After the Red Roses came so close to a 26-all draw at Sandy Park in September, there was a feeling the North Americans would get the job done on home soil. Either in Toronto or Ottawa.
Now the Canadian goal will be two out of two. In contrast, for the first time in four years England are hoping to get back to winning ways. It makes for an extremely intriguing Friday night at TD Place.
“That was our aim, to be able to beat England during the October period – I’m just proud of them,” Rouet said at full-time.
“I told them right after the game, as soon as you do it once, you want to do it twice. That’s something we have to focus on.”
You can’t say Canada wasn’t a worthy winner. Be it Alysha Corrigan’s brilliant solo or Shoshanah Seumanutaf’s late winner, let alone Sophie de Goede’s superhuman effort. It was a perfect display of rugby between the first and third ranked teams in the world.
The Wallaroos are on a roll
Victory against Scotland this Friday night in Canberra we could see the Wallaroos equal the number of wins they recorded in 2025.
Victory at the GIO Stadium will also see the side win three games in a row for the first time since their efforts at WXV 2 2024. To say the side found their rhythm at the end of 2026 might be putting it mildly.
Until they played Scotland at the Hive at the end of September, Australia only won once all year. Against Fiji in March. In the months since they were off the pace in the Pacific Four series, they comfortably lost the Laurie O’Reilly Cup to the Black Ferns and surrendered a lead against England and France on the WXV Global Series.
Getting off the mark against the Scots in Edinburgh was just reward for a lot of hard work. It’s all the more impressive when you consider it’s an interim coaching staff led by Women’s High Performance Director Tim Walsh.\
Their 56-12 win against Scotland at the Accor Stadium on Saturday – one of three warm-ups for Bledisloe II – saw a team brimming with confidence.
More than an extremely positive win in eight tries in front of the home support, the biggest players of the Wallaroos also stepped up. Desiree Miller and Maya Stewart were both scorers, while rising star Amelia Whitaker impressed with her brace.
Then there’s Samantha Wood, Faitala Moleka, Waiaria Ellis and Pia Tapsell, all of whom shimmered in the background, while others shone outright. It’s hard not to be excited about this new culture in gold and green.
The Eagles are a world team in form
At this point, no WXV Global Series team has won their last four games in a row. Well, except for American female eagles. They are currently the form team in the world of women’s test rugby after a 36-27 win against Italy in Texas.
More than anything else, it’s a testament to the work Jack Hanratty has done with the Eagles since taking over as head coach. Suddenly his team seems very settled, young stars are emerging and Emilie Bydwell’s sevens players are also getting opportunities.
If you look at the way the team also play their rugby, it is extremely impressive. There is a dynamism to the team, a lethal element to their attack that was lacking in the women’s Rugby World Cup 2025. It’s hard to quantify exactly how much this American team has grown in the 12 months since their group stage exit in England. But make sure it’s plenty.
All of this is before we mention the emergence of Freda Tafuna as a true world-class back row. There is no weak part of the 23-year-old’s game. You have no doubt why she was named the best college player in the country two years in a row. And she competes in a position group where co-captain Georgie Perris-Redding is in the best form of her career, while Kaipona Bailey, Kate Zackary and Hann Humphreys battle it out for starting spots.
Then there’s the extremely impressive 19-year-old Bella Vogel. So new to Test rugby, but also a core part of it. You can feel nothing but excitement for what’s in her future as a player who looked so comfortable at fly-half for her first games, now leading the plays from inside center following the emergence of Life University teammate Nina Mason.
Another match against Italy follows. This time in Nashville, Tennessee, before they end the year against England at Sports Illustrated Stadium in New Jersey. Just enough time for confidence to flow into 2027.
WXV Global Series Results
1st week
- England 48-15 Australia
- Canada 64-26 Scotland
- New Zealand 28-14 France
2nd week
- Wales 50-19 South Africa
- Italy 55-21 Japan
- England 26-26 Canada
- France 29-26 Australia
- Scotland 14-66 New Zealand
- Ireland 36-40 USA
3rd week
- Italy 29-41 South Africa
- England 26-19 New Zealand
- Wales 24-26 USA
- Scotland 10-30 Australia
- France 21-5 Canada
- Ireland 31-24 Japan
4th week
5th week
- Canada 24-21 England
- Australia 56-12 Scotland
- New Zealand 81-12 France
- USA 36-27 Italy
