John Mitchell thinks that the insights he gained from losing the 2019 World Cup final with England’s men’s team could help him lead the country’s women’s team to international success.

Back in 2019, Mitchell was part of Eddie Jones’s coaching team when England faced a tough defeat in Japan against South Africa, shortly after defeating New Zealand in the semi-finals in what is considered one of the finest performances in English rugby history.

Presently, he is the head coach of the Red Roses, who are striving to be the first senior England team to secure a World Cup victory on their home ground as they face Canada at a fully-packed Twickenham on Saturday.

England’s women’s side are firm favourites to come out on top. 

“Reflecting on 2019, that semi-final was an exceptional performance,” Mitchell commented, after revealing an unchanged lineup with the strongest possible team to confront Canada.

“As coaches, we sometimes overlook the need to replenish both the emotional and physical reserves used up in such high-stake matches. In 2019, we likely didn’t do enough to recharge the emotional reserves.”

‘The way we’ve prepared this week is to make sure we headed off for a couple of days after the semi-final performance to be able to come back in focused. 

‘I think we’ve done that really well. This is actually very similar to previous experiences I’ve had. It has its unusual pressures that always come with a pinnacle tournament. 

‘I probably spend more time in this job being a psychologist than a rugby coach. 

‘I’ve only spoken once in the whole week and that was on Tuesday morning. The most important thing is to get out of the girls’ way.’ 

England have lost their last two Women’s World Cup finals in 2022 and 2017 with both losses coming against New Zealand. 

Canada are their opponents this time around after shocking the Black Ferns with an attacking performance that showed just how dangerous a side they are. 

But Mitchell’s outfit has won 32 straight matches since the 2022 final loss in Auckland and should win. Frankly, any other result would be a significant failure. 

England have brushed aside USA, Samoa, Australia, Scotland and France to reach the last two.

There is immense pressure on the team led by captain Zoe Aldcroft. 

‘We’re more focused on opportunity for success than the risk of failure,’ Mitchell said.

‘We haven’t been perfect by any means but we’ve been effective. We’re playing good tournament rugby. Ultimately, I want to see these girls fulfil their potential.’ 

Mitchell has urged England’s women’s stars to go from a ‘good’ side to a ‘great’ one by becoming world champions. 

If, as expected, England do come out on top in front of what will be a world record crowd for a women’s game of 82,000, it is likely to have a transformative effect on the female game in England. 

‘We’ve been working for three years and it’s just our time now. We really feel like that,’ Aldcroft said. 

We are about to find out if that’s the case.

Meanwhile, England men’s and Leicester lock George Martin has been ruled out of the national side’s four autumn internationals after undergoing shoulder surgery. 

Martin has had a rough run of injuries, knee and shoulder problems meaning he hasn’t played since February. 

‘As with any nerve injuries, the timeframe on George’s availability is slightly unknown but to give George the best chance to perform we know it won’t be during the first half of this season,’ Geoff Parling, the Leicester head coach said. 

England coach Steve Borthwick said: ‘George is a fantastic player and a valued member of the England squad. 

‘He approaches everything he does with professionalism and commitment and there’s no doubt he’s bringing that same focus to his rehab. 

‘We look forward to seeing him back when the time is right.’