Pool A

England dominate but Maher and Mataitoga impress.

England 69 vs 7 USA

The World Cup kicked off in the perfect way in front of 43,000 spectators in Sunderland, a part of the country where Union is less popular. The occasion seemed to get to England in the early stages of the game as admitted by Abby Dow in a post-match interview, They did, however, manage to recover through the dominance of their scrum and managed to gain the upper hand by half time when they led by a score of 28-7. Credit must also go to the USA who caused England some serious trouble in the first half and stood up to the test physically. Ilhona Maher is the biggest name in her team and showed up for the big occasion. Throughout a first half in which she had to play without a centre partner for ten minutes, she was able to find space and make dominant carries every time. Her carrying helped put her side on the front foot and delayed England finding their form. 

The second half was an entirely different story. England's scrum became even more dominant and the Red Roses were able to use that advantage to unleash the likes of Dow, Kildunne and Breach who scored 5-tries between them.  It ended up being a dominant display from the Red Roses but questions will remain over their kickoff routines which is an area that was a huge problem early in the game and caused England to stutter early on. Against a better side, those mistakes will prove costly. Overall, it was a great occasion and a good start for the home nation. For the USA, this game was never going to determine the success of this World Cup so they will move on quickly to their big game which is next week against Australia.

Wallaroos start perfectly.

Australia 73 vs 0 Samoa

This was an easy day for Australia. Samoa were unable to gain any traction whatsoever and found themselves 45- down at the break. Compared to the first half, the second was much-improved for Samoa who "only" conceded four tries after half time. In terms of individual standouts, Miller scored a good hat-trick on the left wing and Talakai benefited from a dominant set-piece in the second to go over twice. Australia will now look forward to their titanic clash with the USA whilst Samoa will have to recover quickly for an even tougher test against the hosts.

Pool B

Scotland thrash Wales in emphatic display of defiance.

Scotland 38 vs 8 Wales

The build-up to this World Cup could not have been more different for these two nations. The Wales women's team is perhaps the only beneficiary of the WRU's new plan for domestic Welsh rugby. The new plan will see the women's sides gain funding and a better structure which should see Wales look to catch up the likes of Ireland who have already benefited from increased investment in women's rugby. Meanwhile, Scotland find themselves in a very challenging position due to over half of the team apparently being without new contracts due to changes made by the Scottish Union on the eve of the World Cup, Although many questions remain, it is difficult to be optimistic about the situation.

On the pitch, Scotland were the dominant side, particularly in the second half. Wales tried to assert dominance through scrums and mauls and the occasional injection of pace from Jasmine Joyce-Butchers. However, Scotland were able to mitigate these threats through their ability to create turnovers and quickly convert turnover-ball into piercing line-breaks. Francesca McGhie benefited most, scoring in the first minute before completing her hat-trick early in the second half. The first half was tight but Wales failed to score at all in the second and were unable to stop Scotland scoring 21-points without reply. 

For Scotland, a game against Fiji presents the perfect opportunity to earn 5 points and secure a place in the quarter-finals before taking on Canada without any pressure. As for the Welsh, they'll be hoping for a miraculous victory over Canada which is what would realistically be needed to progress at this point.

Business as usual for Canada

Canada 65 vs 7 Fiji

This was another game that illustrated the gap between the top teams and the average ones. The highlight of this game was the performance of the prolific Julia Schell (Canada's fullback). Schell scored 6 tries, the first three of which were scored within 4 minutes and 39 seconds. The Canadians went into the game as favourites but were uninhibited by expectation and started quickly with a try in the 6th minute. Next up for Canada is a damaged Wales team whilst the Fijians will be looking to be more competitive when they take on Scotland.

Pool C

Irish joy as a bonus point is secured.

Ireland 42 vs 14 Japan

Ireland are the "best of the rest" in this tournament and that prestige comes with some added pressure. Impressively, Ireland handled their position as favourites for this game with ease. Japan played well in the first half but the Irish were able to maintain a good gap between the sides. They then continued this into the second half and won comfortably, coming away with key bonus point. Japan had been in good form coming into this with a couple of wins over Spain so the quality displayed by Ireland during this victory is an encouraging sign. Ireland will now look to secure passage to the knockout rounds with another bonus-point victory against Spain next weekend. Meanwhile, Japan will have to go up a performance level to keep things close with New Zealand.

A win but worrying injuries for the Black Ferns

New Zealand 54 vs 8 Spain 

New Zealand won this game comfortably with Jorja Smith starring in the first half. Spain had their moments and were able to keep New Zealand stuck deep in their own half for periods of the first half but struggled when it came to converting chances. The key part of the game was how early New Zealand emptied their bench; four changes were made in the 41st minute before the front row was replaced in the 47th minute. Woodman-Wickliffe was the last to come on when she joined the game in the 51st minute. The second half was then marred by three injuries: Olsen-Baker, Leti-I'iga and Du Plessis all went off which meant that the Black Ferns finished the game without a full XV on the pitch. Spain will now take on Ireland and New Zealand will play Japan.

Pool D

A frustrating victory for the French.

France 24 vs 0 Italy

This was a weird game and I'm not quite sure what to make of it. On the one hand, this was a potentially challenging game for France so a win is enough for the game to be considered a success. On the other hand, a bonus point was left on the table against an Italian side that lacked fluency. Perhaps this is an issue that could cost France against top sides but the return of their regular scrum half from suspension will surely help. As for Italy, defence was a big positive but the attack left a lot to be desired which is incredibly obvious given that they failed to score a single point. Both sides will now play "easier" games; France will play Brazil and Italy will play South Africa.

Brazil make history with respectable defeat.

South Africa 66 vs 6 Brazil

This was a game that was about history. For Brazil, this was a maiden appearance at this tournament during which Kochhann scored their first ever points through two penalty kicks. As for South Africa, this was a huge win that will fill the Springboks with confidence before their big clash with South Africa in which they could make history. Brazil will have a tough time against France but it will be a great occasion nonetheless.