Scots Ready for England Juggernaut & Historic Home Crowd
Rachel Malcolm will captain Scotland in front of an anticipated crowd of around 28,000 at Murrayfield this Saturday.
It has been known for several months that the ticket sales for the Scotland versus England match at Murrayfield represent a record for the home team. The exact magnitude of this record is still being determined.
Previously, Scotland's highest attendance was 7,774 for the England match at the Hive in 2024.
Current projections suggest that the 7,774 figure, combined with the next four highest home Hive attendances for Six Nations matches—against France in 2024 and Ireland, Italy, and Wales in 2025—may still be less than the crowd expected this Saturday.
Reports indicate that 28,000 tickets have been sold and the number continues to grow. This event marks a historic occasion for Scotland.
Veteran players recall times when audiences were minimal, sometimes as sparse as one woman and her dog.
Wills will start as Scotland makes one change to face England, with Kildunne shifting to wing and Burton moving to lock as England adjusts their lineup. Serene Skeldon has expressed confidence in facing England.
These are significant times for all involved, especially for experienced players such as Lana Skeldon, Emma Wassell, Rachel Malcolm, Helen Nelson, Chloe Rollie, and Rhona Lloyd, each with 60 to 80 caps, who are familiar with challenging periods.
"It's a bit of a pinch me moment," said Malcolm, the captain. "We've come from having empty stands or not many fans to be in front of a historic crowd and it's something that we are just so proud of. "The performances have improved over the last few years and that's the reason for it but also the work that the team behind the team have done to get our stories out there."
To provide context, the largest crowd ever recorded for the national women's football team was 18,555 during the 2019 match against Jamaica.
Despite receiving substantial media coverage, the football team’s attendance will be surpassed by the rugby team’s crowd this Saturday.
It is acknowledged that a significant number of English supporters will be present at Murrayfield.
The 28,000 figure does not represent solely Scotland supporters but signifies an important moment in women's rugby.
This will be the first time the women's team plays in the main stadium, a significant decision that has attracted a large audience. The decision to hold the match at Murrayfield has been validated by the turnout.
For England, however, this attendance is modest compared to their recent home crowds of 81,885 for the World Cup final and 77,120 for the Six Nations opener against Ireland, figures that are remarkable even in men's football.
'You Learn About the Beauty of Little Victories When Playing England'
England defeated Scotland 40-8 in last year's World Cup.
The outcome of Saturday's match is widely anticipated.
England is expected to win comfortably; Scotland may be fortunate to limit England to 40 points, as they did in the World Cup last autumn.
In the seven previous encounters, England scored 59, 46, 58, 57, 52, 53, and 80 points against Scotland.
Last weekend, England, missing several players, won 33-12 against Ireland without delivering their best performance.
Only seven of England's World Cup starters will begin at Murrayfield, with 12 of the renowned 23 players involved. Despite this, the replacements are highly capable.
England has won 34 consecutive Tests and is pursuing its eighth straight Six Nations title.
Playing England teaches teams to appreciate small victories—such as creating and converting scoring chances, maintaining defensive resilience, set-piece strength, and mental toughness as pressure intensifies.
Victory is unlikely; instead, the focus is on maximizing scoring opportunities, which are typically limited against England.
In England's seven consecutive Six Nations titles, only France has posed significant challenges, narrowly losing by one point last season, five points in 2023, and six points in 2020.
Before last weekend, the closest any other nation came was Ireland's 27-point defeat in 2020 (27-0). Ireland's 21-point loss at Twickenham in this season's opening round now represents the best performance among challengers.
For Scotland, the emphasis is on performance, maintaining competitiveness, leadership from experienced players, development of younger players, and addressing issues such as the lineout, which was problematic even in their victory against Wales.
Head coach Sione Fukofuka commented on Thursday about harnessing the crowd's energy on Saturday.
He also shared a personal anecdote about his four young sons in Brisbane attempting to watch the game from the Principality, despite the 01:40 local kick-off time.
Two sons fell asleep, one made an early exit, and one stayed awake. With the upcoming game starting at 22:30 in Brisbane, viewership may increase.
"I'm not going to lie, there's an edge, absolutely," Fukofuka said. "Last week there was a slightly different prep in terms of the emotional rivalry that exists between Wales and Scotland. "This one, the edge is around performance. The pressure's on England. There's an expectation on them to win every game."
Malcolm stated that the team is prepared to face their greatest challenge.
"It's about being the best Scotland team that we can possibly be," she said. "Last week we tripped up in different areas and Saturday is about taking opportunities when we get them. "We know what we're faced with, we're not going to have the same number of opportunities that we had last week. It's important that when we have them we're accurate. We need to be brave, we can't play within ourselves."
A record home crowd will witness Scotland face the world's best team—a stage once only imagined and an occasion to remember.
