The Jillaroos have shown off their clinical best with a commanding 78-0 win over England in Perth, but it may have come at a cost with Julia Robinson nursing a wrist injury.
Australia barely put a foot wrong as Jocelyn Kelleher, Tarryn Aiken and Tamika Upton orchestrated attacking brilliance on the back of an outstanding forward performance led by Olivia Kernick.
England could not have started worse in the fifth meeting between the two sides, conceding a penalty for being offside off the kickoff.
Match: Australia v England
Round 2 -
home Team
Australia
1st Position
away Team
England
3rd Position
Venue: HBF Park, Perth
While they survived the Jillaroos first attacking raid, they could not hold on the next and it was Jaime Chapman opening the scoring in the 2nd minute.
Chapman soon had a double with an acrobatic catch from a Jocelyn Kelleher kick, the set coming off an England restart going out on the full.
Jaime Chapman 2nd Try
It wasn’t too long before Tamika Upton made an impression, breaking through on a kick return to put Kelleher over, then setting up Julia Robinson and later Isabelle Kelly.
The Jillaroos were forced into a reshuffle when Robinson was forced off with a suspected fractured wrist, but it did little to disrupt their attacking flow, with Abbi Church crossing to help her side to a 36-0 half-time lead.
While Upton and Kelleher made the most noticeable impact on the first half, Tarryn Aiken was just as instrumental and deserved her try on return from the interval.
The astute ballplaying of Olivia Kernick, who was ultimately awarded player of the match, was also a feature of the Jillaroos attack and she joined the scoring with a dummy and run to waltz over under the posts.
The best was yet to come with Abbi Church’s 46th minute try as Jocelyn Kelleher picked up a loose ball and opted for the chip-and-chase, regathering and passing in the one motion to Tamika Upton trailing through, allowing her to find her winger in support and the scoreline was suddenly 58-0.
Abbi Church 2nd Try
Makenzie Weale followed it up by crashing over on Jillaroos debut, before makeshift centre Tiana Penitani-Gray got on the scoresheet, Kelly picked up her second and Shaylee Bent palmed off two on her way to the line to finish the demolition.
England will be sweating on another injury concern after Eva Hunter left the field in the first half with a left ankle injury, while fullback Fran Goldthorpe suffered a left arm injury but finished the match.
The Jillaroos will play Wales in their final pool match, while England face off with Samoa for a place in the semi-finals.
