England Women and Under-20s chase Six Nations glory

England’s Women and Under-20s teams could both secure their respective titles in a double-header at Coventry’s Ricoh Arena on Friday.

The Red Roses go into their game against Ireland three points behind France, who take on the Welsh in Colwyn Bay. France have the points advantage following their 18-17 win over England in Grenoble last weekend.

The England U-20s, who have provided key members of the senior team in recent seasons, including Maro Itoje, are tied on 15 points with France at the top of the table.

England need to beat Ireland and hope that Wales can do them a favour against France. A bonus-point victory for England would also be enough if France win but do not secure a bonus point themselves.

England Women head coach Simon Middleton has made four changes to the side that lost in France last weekend in front of a record crowd.

Kelly Smith, Lagi Tuima and Caity Maddison are brought into the wing, centre and scrum-half positions respectively, while Rowena Burnfield comes into the back row, with Poppy Cleall shifting to the second row.

“We have made changes across the starting XV, with new combinations in the forwards and the backs,” said Middleton.

“We have depth in the squad and are confident that the players coming in will relish the opportunity to showcase their talents in the Six Nations, one of the flagship competitions in the women’s game.

“We fully expect the game against Ireland to be a tough, yet exciting encounter. They are a dangerous side, who will be looking to bounce back after their defeat by Scotland last week.”

Steve Bates, the England U20s head coach, is backing is players to deliver the title and said: “There’s a mathematical possibility that we can still lift the Six Nations trophy, but we’ve just got to concentrate on delivering a really good performance against Ireland. If we play well and execute what we’ve practiced in training, we will give ourselves a good chance of securing victory.”