Women"s Rugby World Cup 2014: England coach Gary Street leaving no stone ...

Especially those Tuesdays. “The girls don’t know how long it is going to last

or what we are going to do . They train in the morning and then in the

afternoon they turn up to an array of powerlifting equipment, sledges,

prowlers and weights.

“We have a shuttle test that they normally do as the only thing on a day

because it is so demanding, but sometimes that gets thrown into the middle

of training on a Tuesday.

“One day they were on the brink of passing out and I asked them to play a

20-minute game of rugby on top to see if they could make decisions when

tired. The relief on their faces when it’s all over is always interesting.

“On another day they had done it and played the game afterwards and we

thought: ‘Can they go again?’ We decided to do it and they all got up and

there was some choice language from some of the forwards. But they did it

together as if to say: ‘You’re not going to break us!’ ”

The 13-10 defeat by New Zealand at Harlequins’ Stoop ground in the 2010 final

has been a significant motivating factor in Street’s preparations for the

team. He says that “2010 was one of the reasons why we all came back”.

“We put a lot into it then, and I had done so personally. That period from

September to Christmas after the final was the worst three months of my

life. We turned up in January and we had a really good heart-to-heart as a

squad.

“Everyone stood up individually at the front and gave the reasons why

they had come back. It was quite emotional. A lot of it was about wanting to

raise the bar for women’s rugby and women’s sport. I thought: ‘I’m going to

the World Cup again.’ It certainly made my mind up.”

Can England do it, though, this time? They did lose three Tests away in New

Zealand last year after all. Understandably Street refuses to talk about the

same sides contesting the final again.

“There’s us, New Zealand, France, Canada, USA, Ireland and Australia,” he

says. “They will all think they can win it. That just shows how much the

women’s game in general has improved. There are lots of well-funded unions

now. It’s going to be a real slugfest.

“Take New Zealand’s pool, they have got USA and Ireland in there, so if

they underestimate them they could be in trouble.”

Whatever happens, it will be another huge opportunity for the women’s game to

continue its increased standing and exposure in the sporting world. “The

public just know more about it these days,” Street says.

“Our squad was announced live on Sky Sports News. It’s just a different

concept that it is newsworthy. It’s strange. You get looks in the street and

I think: ‘Oh no, someone wants a fight’ and then they ask how we’re going to

get on at the weekend.’ That takes some getting used to.

“My dad hasn’t been well recently and had heart surgery. He came round and the

surgeon said: ‘Are you Gary Street’s dad, the England women’s rugby coach?’

It cheered up my dad no end.

“It has moved on massively. I think people will watch this World Cup and

realise that there are a lot of good women players out there and it is a

game to watch. It will be an eye-opener.”

Team by team guide

POOL A

England They won the title in 1994 but have been losing finalists in

the past three tournaments. Won the Six Nations from 2006 to 2012 with six

Grand Slams.

Canada Genuine contenders. They won the CanAm series against United

States and fared well in New Zealand last month, beating Australia 22-0.

Spain Will struggle. They have never defeated England in nine attempts.

Samoa Will also find the going tough. They lost 90-12 against New

Zealand in Auckland last month.

FIXTURES

Aug 1 Canada v Spain 2pm, England v Samoa 5pm

Aug 5 England v Spain 2.45pm, Canada v Samoa 4pm

Aug 9 Spain v Samoa 2pm, England v Canada 2.45pm

POOL B

New Zealand Overwhelming favourites. They have won the last four

competitions and beat England three times last year.

USA Could cause problems. Beat Wales 10-7 at Cross Keys last month, and

defeated Ireland in WRWC in 2010. They also pushed England close last month.

Ireland The most improved side in women’s international rugby, having

won a first Six Nations Grand Slam in 2013.

Kazakhstan Just do not play the top sides enough to challenge. They

did, though, win the Asian Four Nations tournament in May.

FIXTURES

Aug 1 New Zealand v Kazakhstan 12pm, USA v Ireland 4pm

Aug 5 USA v Kazakhstan 12pm, New Zealand v Ireland 5pm

Aug 9 Ireland v Kazakhstan 12pm, New Zealand v USA 5pm

POOL C

Australia Who knows? They were third in 2010, but have barely played

since with the Australian Rugby Union concentrating on sevens.

France The pressure is on them; the host nation and Grand Slam winners

this year after surprisingly beating England. More comfortable playing at

home.

Wales Unlikely to be in the mix. They won just one match in this year’s

Six Nations and have only beaten France three times.

South Africa Not the force their men are, for sure. They have

beaten Wales twice in five matches but have never beaten France or

Australia.

FIXTURES

Aug 1 Australia v South Africa 2.45pm, France v Wales 7.45pm

Aug 5 Australia v Wales 2pm, France v South Africa 7.45pm

Aug 9 Wales v South Africa 4pm, Australia v France 7.45pm

Aug 13 Semi-finals

Aug 17 Final

TV Live on Sky Sports 1 and 3

Article source: http://www1.skysports.com/rugby-union/news/12553/9065808/bath-announce-immediate-departure-of-director-of-rugby-gary-gold

Women"s Rugby World Cup 2014: England coach Gary Street leaving no stone ...