Head coach John Mitchell, who suffered semi-final defeat when he led his native New Zealand at the men’s World Cup in 2003 and was part of England’s men’s back-room staff when they lost in the final of the 2019 tournament, said he was philosophical about the result coming into the final.

“Sometimes you get them and sometimes you don’t,” he said.

“Simon Middleton (Mitchell’s predecessor) has made some amazing foundations and we’ve brought into that.

“I’m very proud to be a part of this. I’m having a few beers tonight.”

Centre Meg Jones, who missed out on the world player of the year award to Canada’s Sophie de Goede, praised her team-mates’ resilience.

“This game doesn’t care about adversity. It just cares about the repeated efforts you put in,” she said.

“It’s crazy. You only have to look at the Six Nations and how we’ve grown. It’s amazing how far we’ve come. Women’s sport is on a high. Let’s keep it there.”

England’s players will celebrate with the public at a free event at Battersea Power Station on Sunday from 14:00 BST.