There was heartbreak for England's Red Roses ladies rugby team today as they were narrowly beaten despite a valiant performance in the World Cup final.

As Nub News reported on Friday a large number of England's squad in New Zealand represent Harlequins.

Full-back Ellie Kildunne, together with forwards, Vickii Cornborough, Amy Cokayne and Shaunagh Brown were in the squad that faced reigning champions New Zealand on their own turf in front of 42,579.

In what has to be one of the most dramatic World Cup finals of all time, the Red Roses went down to 14 players when Lydia Thompson was shown a red card in the 18th minute and led for most of the game.

However, they were eventually beaten as Ayesha Leti-I'iga's try established a three-point lead for the hosts with nine minutes remaining. Despite throwing everything in their armoury at the New Zealanders, the Red Roses fell short – the fifth time they have been beaten by the Black Ferns in the World Cup. The final score was 34-31.