BRIGHTON - England captain and Mastercard Player of the Match Alex Matthews, head coach John Mitchell, Natasha Hunt, Jess Breach and Megan Jones speak after their 47-7 Pool A win against Australia at Brighton and Hove Albion Stadium on Saturday.

Alex Matthews, England captain and Mastercard Player of the Match

On winning the match and topping Pool A:

"I'm just so proud of the girls, we didn't have momentum in the first half, we stuck at it, we stuck to our gameplan and we came out on top. I think that's the challenge that everyone out there has wanted us to have and we've shown we can do it.

"Australia came out fighting today and that's something we needed as a group. They definitely asked questions of us but we stuck together."

On the performance and what she enjoyed most as captain:

"I was proud of how we stuck together. Our lineout wasn't functioning as normal, Australia's kicking game was phenomenal and really tested us in the backfield, so just how the girls came back together, stuck at it and especially our subs were phenomenal. We couldn't do it without the whole squad.

"I think our defensive effort (was strong). Our attacking game was off, especially in the first off, and you can't do much without the ball. But we were calm and collected at half-time."

On looking forward to a quarter-final against Scotland:

"Definitely. We'll rest up first, catch up with the family, which is the important thing with our group and yes we go again. It will be challenging, a good game."

John Mitchell, England head coach

On securing the win and top spot in Pool A:

"We got the job done and it's a new competition next week, isn't it? 

"I thought our defence was outstanding tonight. Sometimes your attack doesn't necessarily go for you all the time and at times we were a bit ugly in attack, and that's something within our own control, but I thought our defence was outstanding." 

On a quarter-final against Scotland:

"I haven't thought that far ahead. It's great to see them (Scotland) performing well in the tournament as well and it's great that two nations who have such rich rugby histories will be in a World Cup quarter-final." 

Natasha Hunt

On the match:

"This World Cup has been awesome. Fair play to Australia, they really put us to the test in the first half. We just wanted to come out and show the crowd what we were about, score some tries and play some good rugby, although I don’t think we managed that for a large part of that game. But it’s a testament to the girls, what we are trying to achieve on this journey.”

On the Red Roses taking rugby across the country:

"For anyone who knows me, they will say I hate packing my suitcase. You would think since I’ve have been playing since 2011, I would get better. This is an absolute pleasure, I didn’t realise how important it was until we started moving, the crowds of the country getting behind us is brilliant, it really motivates us. And it feels incredible knowing the amount of people we have reached."

Jess Breach

On what it meant to play her 50th cap in front of a home crowd:

"The crowd were phenomenal today, super loud and cheering after someone all the way, which I think is really important. Sometimes we couldn’t hear calls but that’s the nature of the game now. We’re selling out crowds, which I think is really cool and they definitely spur us on in those hard moments, but I think we wanted to show our defensive game today and I think we did that which we should be proud of."

Megan Jones

On the leadership within the game:

"We had huddle discussions - there were a lot of breaks in play, TMOs and a couple of injuries. Those are the really important moments for us where we can come together, figure out our next set plays and get aligned with what we are going to do next. We could not get past a lot of the phases in the first half, and we knew that they would come to attack."