Danika Priim
Former Leeds and England forward on BBC Two

It's a chilly night but I have got goosebumps standing here with this crowd. I am so excited.

The teams are out. The atmosphere is electric. Every seat is filled.

Image source, Getty Images

Great Britain/England have been beaten by New Zealand in each of the last five tournaments and most of the Kiwis' squad plays in Australia's NRLW.

The three-time winners have lost to Australia in the last two finals, but England captain Emily Rudge says the hosts "definitely won't feel like we're the underdogs" in York.

"Traditionally, we are underdogs, but with it being a home World Cup we have got a lot of support and we'll have a lot of people in the crowd supporting us," she added.

"New Zealand want to get through to the final as much as we do so we're expecting a big performance from them - and I think they should expect the same from us.

"We've come off the back of three good wins and a physical game against Papua New Guinea, which did test us a bit more than the other two."

Lois Forsell
Leeds Rhinos women's head coach on BBC Two

Our game has come on so much I think New Zealand know they're going to be in a match.

New Zealand were beaten 10-8 by Australia in their final group game but Kiwis' prop Amber Hall, 27, was named player of the match.

"Amber is one of the best players in the world and I'm really pleased that she's on our team - I'd hate to be standing opposite her," said New Zealand coach Ricky Henry.

"Amber has done some great stuff, not just here but at previous World Cups, and she has got a massive reputation.

"But we know we are going to have to get our bodies right and play really well if we are going to beat England."

Danika Priim
Former Leeds and England forward on BBC Two

Hollie Dodd has been phenomenal all tournament. I am surprised she is on he bench. We know how good New Zealand are up the middle and we have our biggest forward on the bench.

Like the Lionesses in the summer, the rugby league team has felt the anticipation building among fans throughout the tournament, which is being shown live on the BBC.

"We had a bit of free time yesterday [Thursday] and a lot of the girls went into York," said England's Tara-Jane Stanley. "I know that they were stopped for photos and whatnot.

"It's really humbling, the fact that people are appreciating the sport that we play in, and that we work really hard to represent.

"It's a great atmosphere and we want to take that through the tournament," she added. "I think we've just got to embrace it.

"The coaches speak a lot about 'living in the moment' and that's exactly what we're doing. We're really enjoying the experience and happy to be the faces on the field, representing the sport.

"Because the exposure is on the BBC, people come across it and are mesmerised by our sport. Still, there's people who've not really seen that women have done this before, and the fact they're enjoying it is fantastic to hear."

England head coach Craig Richards on BBC Two: "On the back of the disappointment of the men's defeat, the wheelchair team inspired us by reaching the final and the Lionesses success has also inspired us.

"We have some really good players who have not made the squad and we have some really strong players on the bench to raise the tempo."

England centre Tara-Jane Stanley says they are no longer starstruck by facing the southern hemisphere giants at the Rugby League World Cup.

The only team from the northern hemisphere to have reached the World Cup final was Great Britain at the inaugural tournament in 2000.

"I think in the past there have been people who have idolised them but these days we're all about us," said Stanley.

She added: "Everyone who pulls on an England shirt believes we are going to win. We've worked a lot on our core skills and maybe in the past that was something we didn't focus on enough.

"We were worrying too much about what the opponents were going to bring against us. We've learned to focus on ourselves and it's working."

England reached the semi-final having topped Group A with an unbeaten run thanks to dominant wins over Brazil, Canada and PNG.

New Zealand finished second in Group B, having narrowly lost 10-8 to Australia in York on Thursday.

But it's a winner-takes-all tie in York tonight.

Image source, Getty Images

England are eager to harness the feel-good factor sweeping through women's sport in the Rugby League World Cup.

England's football team won Euro 2022 as hosts in July and England reached the Rugby World Cup final on Saturday, losing to New Zealand in the final.

"It's been massively inspirational to see other England teams get success, especially getting a 'home' win with the Euros," said captain Emily Rudge.

"That's definitely something that we want to replicate in this World Cup. Hopefully we can see some of the same benefits and it will inspire more people to get into the sport."

Image source, Getty Images

Vicky Molyneux returns to England's 19-strong squad ahead for tonight's World Cup semi-final against New Zealand at the York Community Stadium.

Coach Craig Richards has made just one change to after Wednesday's 42-4 win against Papua New Guinea.

Wigan Warriors forward Molyneux missed England's final group game against PNG, but returns in place of Carrie Roberts.

Molyneux was named player of the match in England's dominant 54-4 Group A victory against Canada.

England head into their semi-final in decent form, having gone unbeaten during the group stage, with Richards previously making five changes for the PNG game.

The teams are in...

BBC Two

You can watch all the action from this game live on BBC Red Button and by pressing the play icon at the top of this page.

Build-up will get under way shortly. Unmissable.

Image source, Getty Images

Earlier, Australia thrashed Papua New Guinea 82-0 in our first semi-final.

Who will join them in the final at Old Trafford, hosts England or record three-time winners New Zealand?

Kick-off is 30 minutes away in York. Let's do this!