Canada beat England 24-21 in Toronto to end unbeaten run

In a WXV Global Series game reported on October 17, 2026, Canada ended England's unbeaten streak as Shoshanah Seumanutafa's late try sealed a 24-21 victory at Toronto's BMO Field.¹²³

Canada recover after half-time deficit

England led 14-5 at half-time, according to the Guardian, but Canada recovered to take the match. World Rugby reported that Seumanutafa's deciding try restored a Canadian lead for the first time since the 34th minute. It said she had entered the game earlier than expected after an injury to Alex Tessier.²³

The opening stages brought opportunities for Canada while England remained scoreless for 30 minutes. According to the Guardian, an early England score was disallowed and Zoe Harrison received a yellow card. Savannah Bauder then scored for Canada, exploiting space created by an attacking overlap.²³

Canada also lost a player temporarily when Laetitia Royer went to the sin bin. Maddie Feaunati scored England's first try after 30 minutes, the Guardian reported. World Rugby said tries by Feaunati and Harrison gave England their advantage at the interval.²³

Alysha Corrigan scored for Canada in the second half before Sarah Bern replied for England. World Rugby described Corrigan kicking ahead and gathering the ball after a pass from Sophie de Goede, and said Bern's response pushed England's advantage to nine points.²³

DaLeaka Menin then scored for Canada before Seumanutafa supplied the try that decided the result. According to World Rugby, Menin both initiated and completed the move for her try and was named player of the match for the second consecutive meeting between the teams.²³

A change in the recent balance

The result followed a 26-26 draw between the sides in Exeter. The BBC placed that match at Sandy Park in September and reported that, before this autumn, England had won all seven meetings with Canada during the decade, by an average margin of nearly 22 points.¹²

The Guardian put England's unbeaten sequence at 41 matches over four years. The BBC traced its beginning to the 2022 Rugby World Cup final and said the Toronto defeat was England's first under head coach John Mitchell. Rugby Canada said the victory was Canada's first against England on Canadian soil.¹²⁴

Attendance was 18,621, according to the BBC and Rugby Canada. According to the Guardian, no women's rugby match in North America had previously drawn as many spectators as the event at BMO Field.¹²⁴

England look to the rematch

Mitchell said England were disappointed but could learn more from the defeat than from victories. “We are not driven by outcome,” he said. England hooker Amy Cokayne also argued against a major change in approach, telling the BBC that the teams had not been far apart.¹²

The teams are scheduled to meet again, with the BBC identifying Ottawa as the venue for a Friday rematch. Its analysis also noted that Canadian players and head coach Kevin Rouet had gained experience in England's PWR, despite Canada having no professional women's domestic league.¹²