Harrison intercept seals England win over New Zealand in WXV Global Series
England beat New Zealand at Allianz Stadium on 26 September 2026 in the WXV Global Series when Zoe Harrison intercepted a pass and scored in the final play of overtime to secure victory.
John Mitchell's Red Roses had been unbeaten in every match from his arrival midway through the 2023 WXV1 campaign through their Women's Rugby World Cup title, a run of wins stretching to 39 games before a 26-26 draw with Canada at Sandy Park last week halted that sequence. Welcoming an unbeaten New Zealand side under new head coach Whitney Hansen to Allianz Stadium carried stakes for England in front of a 59,871 crowd, and Mitchell had said the WXV Global Series would provide new opportunities even though a home defeat was not part of the long-term plan.
The game swung late when Braxton Sorensen-McGee landed a conversion with less than 10 minutes remaining to bring the Black Ferns level at 19-19, and England then scored in overtime when Harrison intercepted and ran in the winning try. "We couldn't have a repeat of what happened against Canada last week. A draw wasn't good enough, so we had to get the points somehow," Harrison told BBC Radio 5 Live. "It's massive - it goes back to that World Cup final [in 2022] for me - beating them on home soil was fantastic and it being such a close game is great for women's rugby."
England's performances this campaign have lacked some of the clinical edge seen en route to the World Cup, and their defence, now supported by Shaun Edwards, has been described as leaky. They were also without several key players, including World Cup-winning captain Zoe Stratford, and Kildunne produced a score to put England back in front during the contest. "To put it into context, the Red Roses don't play New Zealand and Canada often - it's important to learn how to win tight Test matches," Mitchell said. "The message at half-time was that this game will turn - we will get some possession and let's attack it. "The girls took the handbrake off and tried to go to space, even from deep, and were still tenacious without the ball, which was awesome."
New Zealand remain the world's second-ranked side and were the last team to beat England, doing so in the 2022 World Cup final; they have beaten England in five World Cup finals and were once the undisputed number one team. Despite suffering a fourth straight defeat by the Red Roses, Hansen's side showed progress and benefit from recent domestic investment, with Super Rugby Aupiki operating as a fully professional, full-time competition for the first time this year. "We didn't want a draw," New Zealand head coach Whitney Hansen said. "After watching last week [against Canada], we knew we were going to fight to the death, so I love that she threw that pass. "I think for us, win or lose, we're about our performance. We've talked heaps about what does great look like - where have we achieved that and where haven't we?"
The WXV Global Series, running from 2026 to 2028, features the world's top 12 teams and is intended to increase competitive fixtures ahead of the 2029 World Cup; England have already faced the world's second- and third-ranked sides in this campaign. Mitchell noted the broader context around these Tests: "People are starting to realise the context we are in. Even if we had lost, we were right up there," Mitchell added. "New Zealand are in a really great position for the Lions series and heading in the right direction for the [2027] World Cup. We are also evolving [as a team]." The British and Irish Lions women's team will tour New Zealand next year.
England now travel to Canada to complete their three-Test series against the World Cup runners-up, with matches in October scheduled in Toronto and Ottawa and the series described as perfectly poised at 1-1.
