England coach Sarah Hunter to miss WXV ahead of birth of child
The Red Roses will be without assistant coach Sarah Hunter at the upcoming WXV tournament with the former England captain set to give birth to her first child.
Hunter has overseen England’s defence since taking a position in John Mitchell’s staff after concluding her record-breaking career last year.
Capped 141 times for her country, the 38-year-old helped guide England to victory at the inaugural edition of WXV in New Zealand last autumn before a sixth successive Women’s Six Nations title was secured earlier this year.
Mitchell will be without his defence coach in Canada, with Hunter confirming a due date in October on social media when announcing her pregnancy in July.
It is understood that there are currently no plans to provide maternity cover for the former number eight, with England’s exisiting staff expected to cover her duties.
Attack coach Lou Meadows, fowards coach Louis Deacon and scrum consultant Nathan Catt — who has worked extensively with the Red Roses front row this year — are expected to travel for the tournament, which begins on 29 September.
England face the United States, New Zealand and hosts Canada as they look to retain their WXV1 title. They meet France in their first warm-up fixture at Kingsholm on Saturday before a marquee clash with the Black Ferns at Allianz Stadium (formerly Twickenham) next week.
Mitchell will confirm a 30-player squad for the tournament on 18 September after both warm-up games.
Two Red Roses players have benefitted from a ground-breaking maternity policy negotiated by The Rugby Players’ Association (RPA) that entitles them to 26 weeks on full pay. Abbie Ward has returned to international duty after giving birth, while Vickii Cornborough has now retired from Test rugby.
