England Womens Under 20s Squad named for 2011/12 season

The squad sees 16 players who were involved in this season’s 100 percent winning campaign continue with the Under 20s for a further term.

Amanda Bennett and Steve Halsey will once again coach the squad after their success this season which saw England defeat Wales 32-19, Scotland 77-0 and France 12-5.

Bennett said: “This squad is a very exciting mix of young talent and established players who have represented the U20s this season. The recent U20s trials showed exactly how much the game has progressed and the level of skill, physical development and ambition there is in English rugby. It was difficult to make final decisions in many cases but we know we’ll see some players who didn’t make the final cut at some point in the near future. They will have the club and the RFUW Divisional Programme next season to make a statement and we’ll be watching them closely.”

Although fixtures are to be confirmed for the forthcoming season England looks set to face their home nations’ rivals once again in a competitive and rigorous international programme.  

Bennett added: “2010/11 has offered some tremendous challenges and this year’s squad stood up exceptionally well to the task, and I am sure the new season will be exactly the same.

“We’ve identified new players who have the potential, and hopefully the work ethic, to progress to higher levels in the game and this is fundamentally what the U20s programme is about. Our aim is to prepare players to play for England and, beyond that, to win the World Cup.

“We are delighted that Amber Read, Natasha Jones and Ceri Large, who all started the season in the U20s, were selected for the England ‘A’ squad that won the European Trophy in April. Then this month, Charlotte Keane, Rose Jay and Lydia Thompson were selected into the England Elite squad. We genuinely feel the U20s programme is paying off in terms of player development and performance progression.”

England U20s squad 2011/2012 (Club, CB, Region)

Bianca           Blackburn      (Gloucester Reds, Gloucester, South West)

Lauren           Cattell(Chesham, Buckinghamshire, South West)

PoppyCleall  (Bristol, Hampshire, South West)

Fiona Davidson       (Richmond, Surrey, London & South East)

Lucy   Demaine       (Bristol, Cornwall, South West)

Louise            Dennis          (Worcester, North Midlands, Midlands)

Mica    Evans(Exeter Saracens, Devon,South West)

Fiona  Fletcher         (Lichfield, Staffordshire, Midlands)

Hannah         Gallagher      (Saracens, Hertfordshire, London & South East)

Ellen   Gattlin            (Rochford Hundred, Essex, London & South East)

Emily  Hatherall        (Worcester, North Midlands, Midlands)

Rebecca        Hughes          (Bristol, Somerset, South West)

Emily  Kingston        (Gloucester Reds, Gloucestershire, South West)

Alexandra      Matthews       (London Irish, Surrey, London & SE)

Charlotte        Notman          (Newquay Hornets,             Cornwall, South West)

Georgia          Peedle           (Worcester, Hertfordshire, London & South East)

Catherine      Pugh  (Rochford Hundred, Essex            , London & South East)

Leanne          Riley   (Worcester, North Midlands, Midlands)

Rachel           Roberts          (Gloucester Reds, Gloucester, North)

Abbie Scott   (Keswick, Cumbria, North)

Emily Scott   (Thurrock, Essex, London & South East)

Amy    Wilson-Hardy            (Bristol, Sussex, South West)