‘Selfless’ Kildunne and ‘unsung’ Botterman key to England chances

Ellie Kildunne grabbed the headlines in England’s statement victory over the United States in their Rugby World Cup opener, but Hannah Botterman has been identified as a pivotal player when the matches get tougher in the knockout stage.

Full-back Kildunne dazzled in Sunderland on Friday night, making 153 metres and five clean breaks, and dotting down for a try either side of half-time as England cruised to a 69-7 win.

However, while the reigning World Player of the Year could have added at least two more tries to her individual tally, she instead chose to twice set up Jess Breach, with 2014 World Cup winner Maggie Alphonsi praising her situational awareness and “selfless” actions.

“Ellie Kildunne could easily be selfish but she showed she is selfless,” former England flanker Alphonsi said.

With winger Dow also crossing the tryline, England’s back three bagged five of their side’s 11 tries at the Stadium of Light, taking their combined tally to 141 in 157 appearances.

Speaking on BBC Sport’s Rugby Union Weekly podcast, commentator Claire Thomas said we are witnessing “a generation coming of age at this tournament” while 1994 World Cup winner Giselle Mather pinpointed the teamwork of England’s back three as a key component in any future success.

“The back three that England have are a phenomenal force and they have to work together for the good of the team. It’s got to be the back three scoring together,” Mather said.

“Abby Dow could have gone on the outside and she put the ball back inside to Ellie Kildunne. Ellie gives two lovely passes to Jess Breach, who puts the ball down.

Kildunne, who was named player of the match, maintained her selfless attitude in her post-match interview, deflecting attention from her own performance to instead praise the team effort which underpinned England’s dominant victory.

“It’s a team sport. We wouldn’t have the space on the edges if it wasn’t for the play through the middle,” she said.

“It’s a full team effort. You can’t win a game of rugby with one person. Individuals don’t win World Cups.”

On England’s back three, she added: “We’ve played together a long time. With the depth we’ve got with Emma Sing and Claudia [Moloney-MacDonald] as well, we’re a tight unit. We know how each other play, we know the speeds of each other. When someone’s running down the wing, it’s about supporting them and being that touch if you need.”

But while England’s backs dominated the headlines, Mather, Thomas, and Rugby Union Weekly host Sara Orchard were unanimous in naming Botterman their player of the match.

The prop, who bulldozed over for a first-half try of her own, earned praise for her unsung and less glamorous defensive efforts, with Orchard calling it a “statement performance”.

Thomas, meanwhile, hailed the 26-year-old as England’s player to watch against tougher opposition.

“She’s developed an uncanny ability to turn over balls under huge pressure when her heels are on her own tryline,” she said.

Despite running in 11 tries, conceding just once, and kicking off their tournament with a bonus-point victory, England were not flawless on Friday, with Orchard rating their performance “five out of 10”.

John Mitchell’s side were nervy with their handling when dealing with the restart, beginning with Abbie Ward letting the opening kick-off bounce and never really settling from there – a weakness that could prove costly against the tournament’s top sides.

“I can’t remember the last time I saw a really classy Red Rose let the ball find grass like [Ward]. We thought, ‘that’s fine, it won’t happen again’ and then it kept on happening,” Thomas said.

“It was almost like they were experimenting with something and they hadn’t yet got to grips with it.

“They have just revealed an Achilles’ heel, if they can’t fix it in the next week.”

Mather added: “They went for one-player lifts and that’s a very hard skill. Is it a skill we need to be doing if we’re not doing it well?

“Every time we scored, we let the USA back in the game. That’s fine against the USA but when it’s Canada, France, New Zealand, that’s not fine.