Relieved Carpenter relishes making long-awaited England debut in USA
But the match in the American capital kicked off an hour later than planned due to a lightning strike in the area, with the game then halted by a further half an hour on 29 minutes when another struck within 10 miles of the ground when England were 14-0 up.
The disruption followed several similar incidents at the recent Club World Cup in the US, with champions Chelsea's clash against Benfica delayed by nearly two hours after the Portuguese giants endured an even longer disruption against Auckland City.
Sale Sharks full-back Carpenter, watched on by dad Will, mum Jackie, partner Federica and brother Josh at Audi Field, was one of six players to be handed their debuts alongside fellow starters Max Ojomoh and Arthur Clark.
And asked about how the delays affected him, he said: 'Most of us getting new caps were just hoping the game was going to start, to be honest!
'Thankfully the weather held out eventually – there are a lot of happy boys in there and it's been a really special tour.
'It's probably not one the lads expected – it was probably the longest game of rugby a lot of the boys have had.
'But to go out there and get the win makes it very special.
'We've got a lot of strong leaders in there who led the way, kept us composed and got us chilled out and fired up at the right time.
'Mentally it's quite tough when you're about to start a game, then come off again.
'But I thought the boys handled it really well – to get three wins out of three is a great way to do it.
'The connections boys have made is massive and there are lots of happy faces in the dressing room right now.
'It was definitely special [to have my family here] – they're the reason I'm here. They've supported me throughout as a young one and as a professional.
'For them to be here for my first one is massively important to me.'
Curtis Langdon, Luke Northmore, Cadan Murley, Jack van Poortvliet, Harry Randall and debutant Gabriel Oghre all scored to make it three transatlantic wins from three and extend England's winning run to seven matches – their longest streak since back in 2020.
Carpenter nearly got on the scoresheet himself only for his dream debut try to be denied after a narrowly-adjudged Murley knock-on.
USA grabbed a late consolation through Shilo Klein to give the home fans who remained something to cheer about but England's work was done as they ended their triumphant tour in style.
England will now enjoy their summer break before gearing up for crunch autumn internationals against the likes of Australia and New Zealand at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham.
And Carpenter, who delivered a rock-solid display on debut, is desperate to be involved.
'That's definitely a goal of mine,' he added.
'Whether it happens or not I don't know – I've got to go back and perform for Sale now.
'We'll definitely enjoy the break and hopefully when autumn comes round I'm still performing and can get a few more caps.'
Purchase your tickets to the Autumn Nations Series at Allianz Stadium https://www.eticketing.co.uk/rfu/
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Herald Scotland
19 minutes ago
- The Herald Scotland
Venus Williams makes a winning return to action at the age of 45
She and fellow American Baptiste proved too strong for Eugenie Bouchard and Clervie Ngounoue as they triumphed 6-3 6-1 in a last-16 encounter that lasted 72 minutes. Her comeback will continue as she takes on another American in Peyton Stearns in the first round of the singles. It is Williams' first appearances in a WTA Tour event since March 2024. 'It was great to come out here and see the energy,' Williams said on Sky Sports after the match. 'As we were walking out to the court, we knew this was going to be a match. 'Our opponents actually played very well. It wasn't easy for us but we brought it together quickly as a team. It was inspiring to be out here. I love this game and still hitting it big.' Williams joked she wished she could have partnered with Baptiste, the 23-year-old world number 50, years earlier rather than playing with her sister Serena. She said: 'I think from the first point, I could see that we were going to be a good team. We just should have started playing earlier, years ago, right? I think Serena was just in the way!' Emma Raducanu enjoyed rare doubles success in Washington (Adam Davy/PA) Britain's Emma Raducanu scored an eye-catching win on her doubles debut alongside former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina. Competing together for the first time, the duo fought back from an early deficit to beat fourth seeds Tereza Mihalikova and Britain's Olivia Nicholls 2-6 7-6 (4) 11-9 in a decisive tie-break set. It was a notable win for Raducanu and Rybakina against opponents who triumphed at the Berlin Open last month and also reached the final at Indian Wells earlier this year. Look at what it means!!! ❤️🔥 2023 champion Dan Evans digs deep to overcome Bergs 3-6 6-4 6-3 to progress in Washington. @mubadalacitidc | #MubadalaCitiDCOpen — ATP Tour (@atptour) July 21, 2025 Earlier, former men's singles champion Dan Evans enjoyed a triumphant return to the tournament as he came from behind to beat Zizou Bergs. Evans, the veteran former British number one, triumphed in 2023 but opted not to defend his title last year as he focused on the Olympics. The 35-year-old was awarded a wildcard to participate this time and took advantage as he overcame a slow start to beat the Belgian Bergs, the world number 52, 3-6 6-4 6-3. Bergs looked to have resisted the fightback when he edged back ahead with a break in the final set but Evans powered back to secure victory by winning four successive games. 'I didn't just want to take the wildcard and lose,' Evans said on Sky Sports. 'I felt I needed to pay them back a bit and try to 'defend' my title, because I couldn't last year. 'It was great, really enjoyed it, but it was rally difficult. There wasn't much rhythm. He played very well and I was lucky to come through that.'
Powys County Times
21 minutes ago
- Powys County Times
Venus Williams makes a winning return to action at the age of 45
Venus Williams made a winning return to action after 16 months out with doubles victory alongside Hailey Baptiste in Washington on Monday. The 45-year-old seven-time grand slam tournament winner accepted a wildcard to compete in the Mubadala Citi DC Open this week. She and fellow American Baptiste proved too strong for Eugenie Bouchard and Clervie Ngounoue as they triumphed 6-3 6-1 in a last-16 encounter that lasted 72 minutes. She's back 🤩 The one and only @Venuseswilliams returns to court. #MubadalaCitiDCOpen — wta (@WTA) July 21, 2025 Her comeback will continue as she takes on another American in Peyton Stearns in the first round of the singles. It is Williams' first appearances in a WTA Tour event since March 2024. 'It was great to come out here and see the energy,' Williams said on Sky Sports after the match. 'As we were walking out to the court, we knew this was going to be a match. 'Our opponents actually played very well. It wasn't easy for us but we brought it together quickly as a team. It was inspiring to be out here. I love this game and still hitting it big.' Williams joked she wished she could have partnered with Baptiste, the 23-year-old world number 50, years earlier rather than playing with her sister Serena. She said: 'I think from the first point, I could see that we were going to be a good team. We just should have started playing earlier, years ago, right? I think Serena was just in the way!' Britain's Emma Raducanu scored an eye-catching win on her doubles debut alongside former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina. Competing together for the first time, the duo fought back from an early deficit to beat fourth seeds Tereza Mihalikova and Britain's Olivia Nicholls 2-6 7-6 (4) 11-9 in a decisive tie-break set. It was a notable win for Raducanu and Rybakina against opponents who triumphed at the Berlin Open last month and also reached the final at Indian Wells earlier this year. Look at what it means!!! ❤️🔥 2023 champion Dan Evans digs deep to overcome Bergs 3-6 6-4 6-3 to progress in Washington. @mubadalacitidc | #MubadalaCitiDCOpen — ATP Tour (@atptour) July 21, 2025 British number one Katie Boulter fell at the first hurdle in the singles as she went out 3-6 4-6 to Greece's Maria Sakkari. Boulter lost her opening service game in each set and was never able to regain the initiative. Earlier, former men's singles champion Dan Evans enjoyed a triumphant return to the tournament as he came from behind to beat Zizou Bergs. Evans, the veteran former British number one, triumphed in 2023 but opted not to defend his title last year as he focused on the Olympics. The 35-year-old was awarded a wildcard to participate this time and took advantage as he overcame a slow start to beat the Belgian Bergs, the world number 52, 3-6 6-4 6-3. Bergs looked to have resisted the fightback when he edged back ahead with a break in the final set but Evans powered back to secure victory by winning four successive games. 'I didn't just want to take the wildcard and lose,' Evans said on Sky Sports. 'I felt I needed to pay them back a bit and try to 'defend' my title, because I couldn't last year. 'It was great, really enjoyed it, but it was rally difficult. There wasn't much rhythm. He played very well and I was lucky to come through that.'
North Wales Chronicle
22 minutes ago
- North Wales Chronicle
Venus Williams makes a winning return to action at the age of 45
The 45-year-old seven-time grand slam tournament winner accepted a wildcard to compete in the Mubadala Citi DC Open this week. She and fellow American Baptiste proved too strong for Eugenie Bouchard and Clervie Ngounoue as they triumphed 6-3 6-1 in a last-16 encounter that lasted 72 minutes. She's back 🤩 The one and only @Venuseswilliams returns to court.#MubadalaCitiDCOpen — wta (@WTA) July 21, 2025 Her comeback will continue as she takes on another American in Peyton Stearns in the first round of the singles. It is Williams' first appearances in a WTA Tour event since March 2024. 'It was great to come out here and see the energy,' Williams said on Sky Sports after the match. 'As we were walking out to the court, we knew this was going to be a match. 'Our opponents actually played very well. It wasn't easy for us but we brought it together quickly as a team. It was inspiring to be out here. I love this game and still hitting it big.' Williams joked she wished she could have partnered with Baptiste, the 23-year-old world number 50, years earlier rather than playing with her sister Serena. She said: 'I think from the first point, I could see that we were going to be a good team. We just should have started playing earlier, years ago, right? I think Serena was just in the way!' Britain's Emma Raducanu scored an eye-catching win on her doubles debut alongside former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina. Competing together for the first time, the duo fought back from an early deficit to beat fourth seeds Tereza Mihalikova and Britain's Olivia Nicholls 2-6 7-6 (4) 11-9 in a decisive tie-break set. It was a notable win for Raducanu and Rybakina against opponents who triumphed at the Berlin Open last month and also reached the final at Indian Wells earlier this year. Look at what it means!!! ❤️🔥 2023 champion Dan Evans digs deep to overcome Bergs 3-6 6-4 6-3 to progress in Washington. @mubadalacitidc | #MubadalaCitiDCOpen — ATP Tour (@atptour) July 21, 2025 British number one Katie Boulter fell at the first hurdle in the singles as she went out 3-6 4-6 to Greece's Maria Sakkari. Boulter lost her opening service game in each set and was never able to regain the initiative. Earlier, former men's singles champion Dan Evans enjoyed a triumphant return to the tournament as he came from behind to beat Zizou Bergs. Evans, the veteran former British number one, triumphed in 2023 but opted not to defend his title last year as he focused on the Olympics. The 35-year-old was awarded a wildcard to participate this time and took advantage as he overcame a slow start to beat the Belgian Bergs, the world number 52, 3-6 6-4 6-3. Bergs looked to have resisted the fightback when he edged back ahead with a break in the final set but Evans powered back to secure victory by winning four successive games. 'I didn't just want to take the wildcard and lose,' Evans said on Sky Sports. 'I felt I needed to pay them back a bit and try to 'defend' my title, because I couldn't last year. 'It was great, really enjoyed it, but it was rally difficult. There wasn't much rhythm. He played very well and I was lucky to come through that.'
