Rowland starts as much-changed England face Ireland

England utility back Helena Rowland will start at inside centre in a much-changed team for their Women's Six Nations opener against Ireland at Allianz Stadium on Saturday.

Centre Tatyana Heard, 31, has been a regular under head coach John Mitchell and started the Rugby World Cup final win over Canada in September, but was ruled out of the Six Nations with a foot injury.

Rowland, who has played for her country in every backline position other than scrum-half, is one of eight changes to the starting team that won England's first World Cup in 11 years at a sold-out 82,000-capacity Allianz Stadium.

More than 75,000 tickets have been sold for the game against Ireland, England's first since becoming world champions.

It is a fresh half-back pairing with Lucy Packer and Holly Aitchison coming in for Natasha Hunt and Zoe Harrison.

Loughborough Lightning lock Lilli Ives Campion replaces Bristol Bears lock Abbie Ward - one of four England women's players to announce they are pregnant.

Megan Jones will captain the side after Zoe Stratford announced her pregnancy in March.

Retired England wing Abby Dow, a mainstay under Mitchell, is replaced by Exeter Chiefs Claudia Moloney-MacDonald, who was part of England's World Cup squad.

The 30-year-old edged out exciting young wingers Bo Westcombe-Evans, Mia Venner and Millie David.

It will be the first time she will face her wife, Ireland hooker Cliodhna Moloney-MacDonald, in a match, with the pair at Exeter together.

Star full-back Ellie Kildunne - a try-scorer in the final win over Canada - is named in the back three.

Props Kelsey Clifford and Sarah Bern are named to start in the front row, while explosive flanker Maddie Feaunati starts on the blind-side.

Loughborough's 19-year-old forward Haineala Lutui could make her debut from the bench in the second row.

Mitchell's side, who are on a 33-game winning run, are chasing an eighth straight Six Nations title and fifth consecutive Grand Slam.

England: Kildunne; Breach, Jones (capt), Rowland, Moloney-MacDonald; Aitchison, L Packer; Clifford, Cokayne, Bern, Talling, Ives Campion, Feaunati, Kabeya, Matthews.

Replacements: Powell, Carson, Muir, Lutui, Burton, Hunt, Harrison, Sing.

There is no place for Bristol Bears prop Hannah Botterman - one of the Red Roses' top performers at the World Cup.

The 26-year-old is a doubt for the rest of the tournament with an ankle injury that has required a scan - the same ankle she had surgery on after the World Cup.

Botterman has been one of the most improved players under Mitchell, developing her scrummaging and establishing herself as one of England's best ball carriers.

The inclusion of Feaunati will help bring a destructive ball carrier into the side, which was not Stratford's main strength.

Clifford proved an able replacement in the World Cup quarter-final win over Scotland - which Botterman missed through injury - scoring twice to show her power in the carry.

Botterman's outgoing personality off the pitch will also be a loss for squad morale in team training.

Mitchell called Rowland "the most valuable person" in his team before the World Cup because of her ability to cover multiple positions.

After Kildunne suffered a concussion during the tournament, Rowland slotted in seamlessly as England's starting full-back for the quarter-final win over Scotland.

Despite her invaluable nature, Rowland has been deployed mainly as a bench player under Mitchell, but she is the obvious choice to partner captain Jones in the centre.

Rowland understands England's system and is an experienced international with 46 caps - a safe pair of hands to guide the Red Roses at inside centre.

"We obviously want really good ball players in those positions, and Helena is an extremely good ball player," Mitchell told BBC Sport.

"She [Rowland] comes across as a second playmaker.

"It wasn't designed because of Tatyana Heard's injury, Helena and Tatyana were definitely going to be competing."

Mitchell used 34 players in last year's tournament and regularly rotated his starting XV, so it is always difficult to read too much into his selections.

Hunt, 37, was the starting scrum-half at the World Cup, and Packer, 26, is seen as her natural successor.

Giving Packer a Test in front of a large crowd could mark the start of a changing of the guard at scrum-half.

The inclusion of Lutui, who is the daughter of former Tonga number eight Aleki Lutui, suggests a first look at the next generation that could play a key role in Australia at the 2029 World Cup.

Mitchell has an eye for a young player and was quick to give Feaunati minutes before the World Cup.

Lutui playing any part in front of what will be a record crowd for a Women's Six Nations game - beating the 58,498 who watched the Grand Slam decider in 2023 - shows he has spotted another potential long-term Red Rose.

The 19-year-old has mainly played in the back row for Loughborough, but can play at lock and that is where Mitchell sees her immediate future after Abbie Ward, Stratford and Rosie Galligan, who have all played in the second row for England, announced their pregnancies.

"We have immersed her straight into lock, she is unlikely to play a lot of back row in this tournament," Mitchell added.

"We have got a lot of girls that can play dual position in that area. That is where a lot of our forward competition will be, she [Lutui] will primarily focus on front lock."