Katy McLean will captain England for the first time this season when she leads her country in this weekend’s women’s rugby 6 Nations game against Scotland. Gary Street has moved regular skipper Catherine Spencer to the bench amid a raft of other changes for a game that he will expect his side to win.

England's international women's rugby flanker Jane Leonard could join the likes of rugby greats Rory Underwood and Rob Wainwright this week if she is named the Combined Services Sports Personality of the Year. Leonard has eight caps for England and was also involved in the historic victory against world champions New Zealand in November.

England kept their winning run intact with a 22-5 victory over Ireland at Esher. In Ireland’s 100th outing in international rugby they did manage to break another record – becoming the first team in this championship to score any points against an England team who look certain to win this title now. England scored four tries in the game and two in the opening ten minutes.

England women’s rugby coach Gary Street has recalled some his strongest players for this weekend’s clash with Ireland. Street used the last game against Italy as an opportunity to give some fringe players a chance to shine but is taking no chances against Ireland, a side who has pushed his team hard in recent seasons.

England A and France A both won their second games in as many weeks with victories over Spain and the Netherlands. England A beat Spain 10-5 with tries from senior star Kat Merchant and Jenny Edwards while France A had a more convincing 37-3 victory. Having lost 29-0 to the same opposition this time last year, Spain game into their game with revenge in mind and a gave their more experienced opponents a tough workout.