'It's not a one-off': Future feels bright for women's sport as Red Roses soak up World Cup win

The euphoria and unbridled joy that has been a hallmark of the women’s Rugby World Cup shone through the rain yesterday as thousands of England fans gathered to celebrate the Red Roses’ victory.

- Sean Ingle

Young girls and women were out in force to cheer on the victory party at Battersea Power Station, just as they had been at the Allianz Stadium when a world-record crowd of 81,885 watched England beat Canada 33-13.

While a few players were a little bleary eyed - hardly a surprise given that some only called it a night at 6.30am - there was little sign of a drop in energy levels as the team led a series of singalongs and revelled in their glory before posing for selfies with supporters.

As they celebrated, England’s coach, John Mitchell, told the crowd how much he admired his team, who he called “fun but driven”, and what they had achieved. “They are unreal to work with every day,” he added.

The Lionesses star Lucy Bronze and the double Olympic champion Kelly Holmes were among those celebrating, with Bronze - who was part of the England football team’s Euro victory in July - telling the crowd: “This feels like déja vu, it is amazing.”

Holmes, meanwhile, pointed to a sporting summer dominated by the women’s football team and athletes such as Amy Hunt, Georgia Hunter Bell and Keely Hodgkinson as evidence that “English women are holding the fort” when it comes to success on the world stage.