Mention of Las Vegas is enough to send a shiver down the spine of any England women’s rugby league supporter.
Not because of lost life savings on the slot machines or undercooked food at the buffet, but because England fell to a record 90-4 defeat by Australia at the Allegiant Stadium in Nevada.
The meeting between England and Australia in March 2025 had been touted as the first in a three-match Test series.
It was meant to be the beginning of a regular Women’s Ashes competition between two historic rivals and form a large part of world rugby league’s charm offensive in the US.
Instead it served up a sobering reminder of the gulf between the Jillaroos – the winners of the previous three World Cups – and England, who shipped 17 tries in a lopsided affair.
The sight of Georgia Roche, who scored England’s only try, in tears at the final whistle and being consoled by her opponents only added to the suffering of English fans who made the trip.
The outcome also led many to believe the game in the northern hemisphere had reached a new nadir – with England’s World Cup prospects almost dismissed out of hand as a result.
However, it has also delivered a seismic shift in England head coach Stuart Barrow’s thinking.
Few of those selected for this tournament bear the scars of that encounter, with a youthful and dynamic squad featuring only six of the team from the Sin City debacle.
And Barrow says excitement, not trepidation, is the feeling in the England camp as they get ready to face the World Cup co-hosts in Perth on Saturday (10:05 BST).
“The youngsters coming in think that they can do better than what we did last time and I fully back that and believe them as well,” Barrow said.
“I don’t think they’ve [Australia] been beaten internationally for a long time, but that’s exciting.
“If you’re a young player coming into this group and coming to represent your country in a World Cup on the other side of the world, you want to play the best.
“People were saying, ‘do we want to avoid teams?’ When you come all this way, you want to pit yourself as an athlete against the best. So there is excitement among the group but they’re all very aware and very respectful of who we’re playing.”
