Amy Cokayne vows redemption at World Cup Final against Canada

Amy Cokayne admits the memory of England’s last World Cup final defeat has never left her.

The hooker scored a hat-trick in the 34-31 loss to New Zealand in 2021 but was left devastated. “Three tries in a World Cup final and still you lose — it was heart-breaking,” she recalled.

The emotional toll of that result saw her retreat from rugby conversations altogether.

“When I got back, I was so desperate to hide away that I went to Wales for a week — where no one talks about English rugby — just playing board games with my nieces,” she said.

Now preparing to face Canada in Saturday’s final at Twickenham, Cokayne is determined to flip the script.

“It’s about turning that pain into something positive. We’ve worked so hard for this, and I want to help make sure we get it right this time,” she said.

“We’ve played at Twickenham a few times so it feels quite natural and normal for us to be here.

“When you’ve got a big crowd, big players stand up – and we’re a team of big players. I’ve no doubt we are going to rise to the occasion.

“In the front row we understand our responsibility to give the team energy. Perhaps we sometimes get a bit carried away with involving the crowd, but we love it.”