ENGLAND coach Stuart Barrow is confident his side can upset the Australian Jillaroos, the current women’s world champions, in America next month.
England and Australia will meet in Las Vegas in March as part of the massive four-game event at Allegiant Stadium.
The Jillaroos have won the past three World Cups in a row and have lost just one game since 2016, against New Zealand in October 2023.
But Barrow believes his team can match the world’s best.
“I wouldn’t be coaching the team if I didn’t think we had every chance of knocking them off,” he said.
“There are probably not many people who give us much of a chance, but as long as we believe in our own playing group and staff group, that’s going to take us forward.
“We’re looking forward to it. We’ve got healthy respect for the opposition, we know they’re world champions for a reason and the NRLW is very competitive. But it just creates more excitement about the challenge we’ll face.”
The Great Britain Lionesses had success against Australia in the past, with five victories from eight matches between 1996 and 2002.
But England have only played the Jillaroos three times, the last coming at the 2017 World Cup, and they have never beaten the green and gold.
“It’s hard to get the quality of opposition in the northern hemisphere, and we’re hoping to develop that as we go along,” Barrow admitted.
“But to test yourselves against the best players in the world is what every player wants to do and it’s what I want to do as a coach.
“It’s a great opportunity for us to go and show what we’re about.”
Both countries are in-between seasons, with the NRLW to start in July and the Women’s Super League kicking off in May.
But Barrow brushed aside any question of the players from either nation being underdone.
“I don’t know what training they’ve been doing, but we’ve been focusing on ourselves,” he said.
“Everything is about us. I’m sure the Australians will be fully prepared. They’ll be playing on a stage they’ve probably not played on before and they won’t want to lose to us.
“Both teams will give their best and we’ll be ready to play.”
According to reports, the future of Australia coach Brad Donald is under threat as the NRL investigates a disparaging comment he allegedly made about a journalist in front of his team.
“I saw a little bit of that (the reports) and I try not to get distracted by it,” Barrow said.
“It’s an in-house thing for them, but we’re going okay, we’re pleased with where we’re at. We’ve just got the tough decision of cutting the squad from 31 to 20, which will be a really hard thing to do.”
