Lydia Thompson and Lark Davies played a part in a dramatic late win for England against France in the Women’s Rugby Super Series in San Diego.
Thompson started on the wing with hooker Davies named amongst the replacements in the third game of the series in California.
A late Emily Scarratt penalty completed the comeback for the Red Roses after trailing 18-5 at the break thanks to French tries from Cyrielle Banet and Caroline Boujard.
Kelly Smith and Scarratt scores put England back in contention before Scarratt struck from the tee to seal the game.
England will now face New Zealand on Sunday July 14, where the tournament moves to San Diego State University’s Torero Stadium for the final round. Simon Middleton’s side sit three points above New Zealand going into the final game on 13 points, with the Black Ferns on 10.
Coach Simon Middleton said: “It was a great test match and hopefully everyone who watched it appreciated what both sides put into it”.
“The character in our team to come back from a tough position we knew we could as we’ve got a lot of belief in being able to close games out – we did it against Canada and we’ve done it again today with some monumental efforts on the field.
England’s Super Series 2019 fixtures
England 38-5 USA
England 19-17 Canada
England 20-18 France
England v New Zealand – Sunday July 14 (Sky Sports Action– kick-off 9pm BST)