Kildunne

England’s world champion full-back Ellie Kildunne said she is “open to anything” when questioned whether she would be involved in the proposed new R360 league.

“It doesn’t mean that I’d take it, but I’d like to understand the league a little bit more to see if that’s an opportunity that I’d like to take,” she told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

The 26-year-old was speaking at Bracknell Rugby Club to help launch the Rugby Football Union’s Rugby Fest weekend.

The initiative is aimed at ensuring the legacy of England’s Women’s Rugby World Cup win.

As the Red Roses visit clubs up and down the country, rumours surrounding the future of the club game in men’s and women’s rugby refuse to go away, with the R360 breakaway league consistently in the headlines.

The Daily Telegraph reported on Thursday that Kildunne is a top target for R360, and that it had been told “a significant number” of her England team-mates have already signed pre-contract agreements to join R360., external

Kildunne is currently contracted to Premiership Women’s Rugby side Harlequins, who open the league season on Friday, 24 October against Loughborough Lightening at the Twickenham Stoop.

“I’m just focused on the Harlequins season that I’ve got, and you know this week has been absolutely crazy, so I can’t look too far ahead – I don’t even know what I’m having for dinner tonight,” added Kildunne.

“There’s going to be lots of investment into the game now, lots of changes that people will see and I think that’s the direction that rugby needs to go.

“We’ve made something happen and that’s going to come with talking points and debates.

“This league (R360) is still something we don’t know too much about.”

Ellie Kildunne returns from a concussion suffered in England’s final pool-stage game against Australia a fortnight ago to take her place as starting full-back in the Rugby World Cup semi-final against France on Saturday.

The 26-year-old World Player of the Year sat out the quarter-final win over Scotland, but has come through the necessary medical checks to add pace and attacking intent to England’s back three.

Prop Hannah Botterman, who has been a force in the loose and at the breakdown so far at the tournament, returns at loose-head prop after back spasms, replacing Kelsey Clifford, who scored two tries against Scotland in her absence.

Zoe Harrison’s game management means she is preferred at fly-half to Holly Aitchison, who impressed at times against Scotland, but whose higher-risk game did not always come off in wet conditions.

Aitchison, 28, had been John Mitchell’s regular starting fly-half until Harrison’s form led to her taking the spot during this year’s Women’s Six Nations.

Despite being known for her kicking game and control, since 2023 Harrison’s involvement in tries per 80 minutes is nearly double that of Aitchison at 1.8 to 1.0.

Saracens fly-half Harrison started the World Cup final defeat by New Zealand in 2022 and is now in pole position to do so again if Mitchell’s side make the final.

Abbie Ward is promoted from the bench and will partner Morwenna Talling, whose player of the match performance against Scotland earns her the nod over Rosie Galligan, in the second row.

Holders New Zealand and Canada meet in the other semi-final on Friday night.

Defeat by the Black Ferns in the last World Cup final is England’s only loss in their past 62 matches – a statistic that stretches back to 2019.

However, Saturday’s semi-final is likely to be the Red Roses’ toughest game by far of a World Cup campaign in which they are yet to be tested.

France, who fought back to beat Ireland 18-13 in the quarter-finals, are the side who have come closest to ending England’s record 31-match winning run, losing this year’s Six Nations Grand Slam finale 43-42.

But World Cup hosts England are on a 16-game winning run against Les Bleues – last losing to their cross-Channel neighbours in the 2018 Six Nations.

Mitchell has consistently rotated his side to build depth for the World Cup and now appears to have settled on his strongest matchday 23.

England, who last won the tournament in 2014, have lost the past two finals to New Zealand.

World player of the year Ellie Kildunne will miss England’s Rugby World Cup quarter-final against Scotland next weekend after sustaining a head injury in the Red Roses’ 47-7 win over Australia.

The England full-back was forced off in the second half of England’s Pool A win on Saturday and faces a mandatory minimum 12-day stand-down period after showing concussion symptoms.

The 25-year-old will also need a hitch-free recovery to be back available to England in time for a potential semi-final on Saturday, 20 September.

Obvious concussion symptoms, such as those shown by Kildunne, negate the need for a pitchside head injury assessment (HIA).

Players whose concussion is diagnosed via an HIA, who have no history of concussion and show no symptoms at a check 36 hours after their injury, can return to action in a minimum of seven days.

However, that route – which could have made Kildunne available for the Scotland match – is not open to the England star under World Rugby’s rules as she showed clear concussion symptoms after banging her head on the turf in a tackle.

While 12 days is her minimum stand-down period from matches, Kildunne can only begin her individual training on Thursday morning at the earliest, with a return to team sessions only possible after all her symptoms have cleared.

Players, on average, take longer than the minimum period to pass medical checks and become available for matches.

England’s path through the draw means their semi-final would be on 20 September – 14 days after Kildunne sustained her concussion.

World Rugby have added lights to players’ smart mouthguards at this tournament so they flash when a player is in a collision that exceeds a set level of force, in addition to the existing alert they send to doctors on the touchlines.

Kildunne headed down the tunnel after the incident, but returned to watch the remainder of the game from the bench, offering a smile and wave to the fans when she was shown on the big screen.

The Red Roses were also forced to replace starting prop Hannah Botterman, who had to leave the field due to back spasms in the first half.

“Ellie [Kildunne] will go through return-to-play protocols,” said England head coach John Mitchell.

“There is normally a 12-day stand down. She is fine. She’ll be frustrated because she had a difficult day at the office. She’ll get better.

“Hannah [Botterman’s] got a muscle spasm, so that will take its course.”

England will monitor Botterman over the next two days before making a decision over whether she restarts training with the rest of the the team on Tuesday.

Captain Zoe Aldcroft missed England’s pool-stage wins over Samoa and Australia with a knee injury, but was back in contact training earlier this week and is expected to be available to face Scotland on Sunday, 14 September at Ashton Gate, Bristol.

Holly Aitchison, who had been kept out of England’s first two games by an ankle injury, made her tournament debut off the bench in the win over the United States in a piece of good news for Mitchell.

Ellie Kildunne’s lovely bit of skill sets up Jess Breach to score her second try for England against USA during the opening game of the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup at the Stadium of Light.

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The reigning world player of the year, Kildunne has been one of the figureheads of the tournament, featuring in organisers’ and sponsors’ promotions.

She says it is surreal to see herself on billboards, in magazines and on social media posts.

“Yeah, it feels strange because I’m just a girl from Yorkshire who’s playing rugby,” she says.

“I’m nothing special. I just love what I do. I just think it’s important to be strong to your values and remember who you are and where you’ve come from because that’s a person that’s got you here.

“It’s not all the showbiz and the lights and the cameras – it’s that young girl that picked up a rugby ball.”

The 25-year-old, who straightened her distinctive curly hair on Monday as the result of losing a bet at training, says that while others may be looking ahead to the 27 September final, England’s focus is solely on the United States in their opening game.

“We’ll be where our feet are – we don’t look too far ahead,” she said.

“There’s no point in looking to the final or if and when we win, because if we don’t get now right, that will never be anything. It’s all ifs, buts and maybes.

“But if we focus on now, we’ve got this week leading to the United States, we’ve finished a hard training session, how do focus on our culture and bonding tonight? How do we get closer as a team?

“That’s going to be the thing that wins the World Cup. You can’t look too far ahead because you’ll trip over.”