England eye Euro defence

England Women have made five changes for their winner-takes-all FIRA-AER European Cup clash with France on Saturday.

Four changes for cup decider

England Women have made five changes for their winner-takes-all FIRA-AER European Cup clash with France on Saturday. Fresh from their Marriott London Sevens heroics, Emily Scarratt and Katherine Merchant come into the back division alongside Kim Oliver. In the pack there are recalls for Marlie Packer and Rochelle Clark as England look to follow up their wins over Spain and Italy. Head Coach Graham Smith said: "The spirit in the camp is very good and we are confident that we have a strong enough team to defend our European Cup crown. "This is a strong England pack, while our backs have also been performing. Georgina Rozario is playing some of her best rugby ever at scrum-half, and Ceri Large is developing into a good international fly-half. "Kim Oliver has also been in top form this season, Emily, Kat and Danielle are world-class players while Lydia really has the potential to be a world class wing." England: 15 Danielle Waterman, 14 Lydia Thompson, 13 Emily Scarratt, 12 Kimberley Oliver, 11 Katherine Merchant, 10 Ceri Large, 9 Georgina Rozario, 1 Rochelle Clark, 2 Victoria Fleetwood, 3 Laura Keates, 4 Rowena Burnfield, 5 Tamara Taylor, 6 Sarah Hunter (C), 7 Marlie Packer, 8 Harriet Millar-Mills
Replacements: 16 Emma Croker, 17 Rosemarie Crowley, 18 Emily Braund, 19 Gemma Sharples, 20 FionaDavidson, 21 Lauren Cattell, 22 Sally Tuson, 23 Kate Newton, 24 Fiona Fletcher, 25 Ruth Laybourn