England crowned Women's Six Nations champions after France held to draw by Scotland

England celebrated a second consecutive Women's Six Nations title, despite not having played a match since March, after France were held to a draw by Scotland in Glasgow. The Red Roses can now make it back-to-back Grand Slams if they beat Italy next Sunday.

France needed a win at Scotstoun Stadium to stay in the race for the title having lost 19-13 to England in the competition’s opening round in February.  However, Les Bleues’ hopes came to an end as they saw a 10-point lead reeled in after wing Rachel Shankland crossed in the 73rd minute and Helen Nelson converted to ensure the match finished in a 13-13 stalemate.

It was the first draw in 19 Championship meetings between the sides and also meant Scotland avoided defeat for the first time in the 2020 series.

While the result prompted celebrations from an England perspective, head coach Simon Middleton was keen to emphasise his side would be staying focused on their fixture in Parma: “We are delighted to have retained the title after four big performances from the team to date. It's a fitting reward for all the hard work put in earlier this year. We have a big week ahead and the aim is to stay focused on securing the Grand Slam in Italy next weekend.”

Due to England being the only fully professional side in the tournament – France are contracted on a part-time basis – the 2020 tournament had been predicted to be a two-horse race but the Red Roses find themselves six points clear with one round left.

There have been calls for increased investment to make the women’s game more competitive and Wales have said it is their ambition to pay their players, despite the financial implications caused by Covid-19. Another solution mooted by tournament organisers to grow the Women’s Six Nations is to look for a separate window and schedule to play the tournament away from the men’s Six Nations – helping to remove the situation whereby the two top rated sides meet in the first round.

Scotland’s achievement in pinning the French back should not be under-estimated considering France are ranked fourth in the world and the Scots 11th. They also had to change coach mid-tournament as the highly rated Philip Doyle, who led Ireland to their 2013 Grand Slam, had to step back from his role due to having to shield on medical grounds from Covid-19. Bryan Easson was appointed on an interim basis in August.

Meanwhile Ireland and France will battle it out for second place in Dublin, rather than Lille, next week after France agreed to sacrifice their home advantage as Irish Government guidance for elite and high-performance athletes and teams meant Ireland would have had to isolate for 14 days following their return from France.

As amateurs, the IRFU said it would not be possible for many of the Ireland players to commit to isolating due to responsibilities to their families and employers. Ireland beat Italy 21-7 on Saturday.