England to meet France in another Women's Rugby World Cup semifinal

England swamped Scotland and France edged Ireland to produce another Women's Rugby World Cup semifinal on Sunday.

England beat Scotland 40-8 in rainy Bristol after France won 18-13 from 13-0 down in its wet and windy quarterfinal in Exeter.

The English stay in Bristol for the semifinal next Saturday. New Zealand and Canada play the other semi there on Friday.

The Red Roses are the only team to reach the semifinals in all 10 World Cups. France has got there a ninth time but never beyond. England is on a 16-match winning streak against Les Bleues.

“We don't want to stop at the semis like so many times before,” France No. 8 Charlotte Escudero said. “We want to make history, and beating England at home would be huge.”

England’s 31st consecutive test victory eclipsed its own world record.

The rain put a premium on the England pack and their pressure on the Scottish set-piece and ruthless finishing put them out of sight by halftime at 26-3.

Four of their six tries went to forwards, one of them to lock Morwenna Talling, the player of the match.

Captain Zoe Aldcroft returned from a knee injury for her first game in three weeks, Holly Aitchison was England's third starting flyhalf in the tournament, Helena Rowland was at fullback for the injured Ellie Kildunne, and England still purred.

“It was a terrific performance in very difficult conditions,” England coach John Mitchell said. “We kept them in their own half and we built pressure frequently through our set-piece. That's where we thought we could break them.”

Prop Kelsey Clifford, playing after back spasms sidelined Hannah Botterman, crashed over for her second double in two matches, and Talling scored after Scotland failed to control a lineout tap down.

The fourth try of the first half was winger Abby Dow's 50th from a pass by Aitchison.

The game was untidy in the second half as England blew chances in front of a crowd of 25,295, but hooker Amy Cokayne scored her 11th World Cup try from a lineout maul and Aitchison touched down for a 14-point haul.

Scotland, in its first quarterfinal in 27 years, was consoled after the fulltime hooter by a breakout from Francesca McGhie that was finished by Rhona Lloyd.

But Scotland succumbed to a 28th straight loss to England since its last win in 1999.

France captain Manaé Feleu spoiled Ireland's last-chance lineout and sent her team into the semifinals.

Two last-minute penalties gave Ireland a throw-in five meters from the try-line with the French short a woman; Alexandra Chambon was in the sin-bin.

France gambled on lifting players instead of bracing for an Irish maul and Feleu, at the front, got finger-tips to the throw-in to knock on the ball and end the nerve-wracking finale.

The tenacious Irish playing their first knockout match in 11 years couldn't believe it.

“We're heartbroken,” Ireland captain Sam Monaghan said. “It went to the death. We took them to a dark place. It was in our hands.”

While the French defense prevailed at the end, their try-line stand to close the first half was even more incredible.

Ireland had first use of what Sandy Park veterans predicted was a 15-point wind and was 13-0 up but desperate for a possibly decisive third try.

Feleu was in the sin-bin for collapsing a 20-meter rolling maul and somehow her 14 teammates repelled 35 phases by the Irish that lasted for four edge-of-the-seat minutes.

“It was a match of character. We had to defend like our lives depended on it,” France winger Joanna Grisez said. “We’ve got guts. It felt like they could have attacked all afternoon and still wouldn’t have broken through.”

Ireland tries by prop Linda Djougang and fullback Stacey Flood — playing on a stitched right foot cut to the bone last weekend against New Zealand — and Dannah O'Brien’s only successful goalkick made it 13-0.

But it didn't appear enough in the conditions, especially having spent 80% of the half on French turf. France missed only four tackles in the first half.

Ireland star No. 8 Aoife Wafer, playing her first game since knee surgery in July, carried a game-high 26 times but her errors cost her team points, including the penalty kick by Morgane Bourgeois that began France's comeback.

Escudero added a converted try and her work rate made her player of the match. “A lot was said about Wafer before the match,” France co-coach Gaëlle Mignot said, “but Charlotte showed that we also have a back-row forward with a big reputation.”

Two huge turnovers by replacement hooker Manon Bigot, a 35-year-old firefighter, led to Grisez's go-ahead 12th try in 12 tests, and Bourgeois' second penalty kick for 18-13 with five tense minutes to go.

“If I can't finish that I've got no business being on the pitch," Grisez said. "I just felt relief, like we could finally play with a bit more calm.”

AP rugby: https://apnews.com/hub/rugby

England's Morwenna Talling center, is stopped during the Women's Rugby World Cup 2025 quarterfinal match between England and Scotland in Bristol, England, Sunday, Sept. 14, 2025.(AP Photo/Anthony Upton)

England's Holly Aitchison, left, scores during the Women's Rugby World Cup 2025 quarter-final match between England and Scotland in Bristol, England, Sunday Sept. 14, 2025. (Andrew Matthews/PA via AP)

Ireland's Aoife Dalton, center, is tackled by France's captain Mane Feleu, left, and her teammate Joanna Grisez during a Women's Rugby World Cup 2025 quarterfinal match between France and Ireland, in Exeter, England, Sunday, Sept. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

France's Morgane Bourgeois, right, kicks a penalty during a Women's Rugby World Cup 2025 quarterfinal match between France and Ireland, in Exeter, England, Sunday, Sept. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

France's Joanna Grisez, front, breaks away from Ireland's Amee-Leigh Costigan, to score a try during a Women's Rugby World Cup 2025 quarterfinal match between France and Ireland, in Exeter, England, Sunday, Sept. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

France's players celebrate following a Women's Rugby World Cup 2025 quarterfinal match between France and Ireland, in Exeter, England, Sunday, Sept. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge Thursday cleared the way for a New York offshore wind project to resume construction, a victory for the developer who said a Trump administration order to pause it would likely kill the project in a matter of days.

District Judge Carl J. Nichols, an appointee of President Donald Trump, ruled construction on the Empire Wind project could go forward while he considers the merits of the government’s order to suspend the project. He faulted the government for not responding to key points in Empire Wind’s court filings, including the contention that the administration violated proper procedure.

Norwegian company Equinor owns Empire Wind. Spokesperson David Schoetz said they welcome the court's decision and will continue to work in collaboration with authorities. It’s the second developer to prevail in court against the administration this week.

The Trump administration froze five big offshore wind projects on the East Coast days before Christmas, citing national security concerns. Trump has targeted offshore wind from his first days back in the White House, most recently calling wind farms “losers” that lose money, destroy the landscape and kill birds.

Developers and states sued seeking to block the order. Large, ocean-based wind farms are the linchpin of plans to shift to renewable energy in East Coast states that have limited land for onshore wind turbines or solar arrays.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul applauded the court decision, telling reporters the projects had been “stopped under the bogus pretense of national security.”

“When I heard this I said one thing: I’m the governor of New York, if there is a national security threat off the coast of New York, you need to tell me what it is. I want a briefing right now. Well, lo and behold, they had no answer,” she said.

On Monday, a judge ruled that the Danish energy company Orsted could resume its project to serve Rhode Island and Connecticut. Senior Judge Royce Lamberth said the government did not sufficiently explain the need for a complete stop to construction. That wind farm, called Revolution Wind, is nearly complete. It’s expected to meet roughly 20% of the electricity needs in Rhode Island, the smallest state, and about 5% of Connecticut’s electricity needs.

Orsted is also suing over the pause of its Sunrise Wind project for New York, with a hearing still to be set. Dominion Energy Virginia, which is developing Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind, plans to ask a judge Friday to block the administration’s order so it can resume construction, too.

Trump has also dismissed offshore wind developments as ugly, but the Empire project is about 14 miles (22.5 kilometers) offshore and the Sunrise project is about 30 miles (48 kilometers) offshore.

The fifth paused project is Vineyard Wind, under construction in Massachusetts. Vineyard Wind LLC, a joint venture between Avangrid and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, joined the rest of the developers in challenging the administration on Thursday. They filed a complaint in District Court in Boston.

In contrast to the halted action in the U.S., the global offshore wind market is growing, with China leading the world in new installations. Nearly all of the new electricity added to the grid in 2024 was renewable. The British government said Wednesday it secured a record 8.4 gigawatts of offshore wind in Europe’s largest offshore wind auction, enough clean electricity to power more than 12 million homes.

Robin Shaffer, president of Protect Our Coast New Jersey, said the Trump administration was right to stop construction on national security grounds. He urged officials to immediately appeal the adverse rulings and seek to halt all work pending appellate review. Opponents of offshore wind projects are particularly vocal and well-organized in New Jersey.

Empire Wind is 60% complete and designed to power more than 500,000 homes. Equinor said the project was in jeopardy due to the limited availability of specialized vessels, as well as heavy financial losses.

During a hearing Wednesday, Judge Nichols said the government’s main security concern seemed to be over operation of the wind turbines, not construction, although the government pushed back on that contention.

In presenting the government’s case, Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward, Jr. was skeptical of the perfect storm of horrible events that Empire Wind said would derail their entire project if construction didn’t resume. He disagreed with the contention that the government’s main concern was over operation.

“I don’t see how you can make this distinction,” Woodward said. He likened it to a nuclear project being built that presented a national security risk. The government would oppose it being built, and it turning on.

Molly Morris, Equinor’s senior vice president overseeing Empire Wind, said in an interview that the company wants to build this project and deliver a major, essential new source of power for New York.

McDermott reported from Providence, Rhode Island. Associated Press writer Anthony Izaguirre contributed to this report from Albany, New York.

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FILE - Wind turbines operate at Vineyard Wind 1 offshore wind farm off the coast of Massachusetts, July 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

FILE - Wind turbine bases, generators and blades sit along with support ships at The Portsmouth Marine terminal that is the staging area for Dominion Energy Virginia, which is developing Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind, Dec. 22, 2025, in Portsmouth, Va. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File)

FILE - A sign for the company Equinor is displayed on Oct. 28, 2020, in Fornebu, Norway. (Håkon Mosvold Larsen/NTB Scanpix via AP, File)

Blades and turbine bases for offshore wind sit at a staging area at New London State Pier, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in New London, Conn. (AP Photo/Matt O'Brien)