England beat France to seal record eighth straight Six Nations title

England’s women arrived in Bordeaux carrying a paradox of dominance and doubt: a record chase for an eighth straight Six Nations title, yet a title defence framed by fears over their defence. They answered with a 43-28 victory over France at Stade Atlantique Bordeaux Métropole on Sunday, extending their unbeaten run to 38 Tests and their winning streak in the championship to 39 matches.

Meg Jones said England had to “go to the trenches” and “front up” during the campaign, language that matched the pressure around a side expected to win but still forced to prove it. That pressure sharpened in the build-up, after Wales and Italy both posted record points tallies and earned try bonus points in England’s previous two matches. Across England’s opening four games, they had conceded 76 points, compared with 29 in the same stage a year earlier. France arrived with the competition’s stingiest defence through the first four rounds and with a record home crowd of 35,000 behind them.

For 20 minutes, France made the contest feel like more than a coronation. Pauline Bourdon Sansus sliced through for a length-of-the-field try and put the hosts 7-0 ahead. England then settled, tightened their line and hit back with the sort of relentless accuracy that has defined their era, moving 26-7 ahead by half-time and eventually pulling clear. It was their fifth bonus-point win in a row, and their six tries lifted their championship tally to 42.

Jones said England had asked for a strong defensive set because “everyone was doubting it,” and the final offered a direct test of whether that siege mentality was just motivational talk or part of what sustains excellence. The answer was both. England’s defence was stretched early, but the response was composed rather than panicked, and France’s best spell never became a full-scale takeover.

The title also underlined the depth England have needed to keep winning. Four players were absent because of pregnancy and more than a dozen missed games through injury. Only six of the players who started last year’s World Cup final were in the starting XV against France, while head coach John Mitchell handed out five debuts during the championship, recalled Delaney Burns and Liz Crake after three-year absences, and used a different second-row pairing in every game.

No side, men’s or women’s, has won a World Cup and a Six Nations back-to-back, yet England have done both within eight months. France finished second for the seventh year in a row, and the gap at the top of the women’s game remains England’s to defend, even as Bordeaux showed how much more demanding that defence has become.