The England full-back Ellie Kildunne has been ruled out of the team’s Rugby World Cup quarter-final against Scotland next Sunday because of concussion protocol.
It was confirmed after the Red Roses’ win over Australia that Kildunne did not have a head injury assessment as she was immediately removed with concussion symptoms after hitting her head on the ground following a tackle. That means that the reigning world player of the year has to have a 12-day mandatory stand down period.
If England reach the semi-finals Kildunne could play but that is dependent on her passing the return-to-play protocols. The Red Roses have Gloucester’s Emma Sing as their backup full-back, as well as versatile back Helena Rowland who can play in the position.
The victory for England in their final pool match saw them topPool A and set up a battle against Bryan Easson’s Scotland. The head coach, John Mitchell, has been impressed by Scotland in the tournament so far.
Mitchell said: “It’s great to be playing against Scotland, they have been playing really well. It’s cool, two countries that have a rich history in rugby. Considering what they have had to experience, contract conditions and those sorts of things they are doing a remarkable job and playing for each other.
“They have slightly changed their game since the Six Nations so there are some opportunities there which we will go back and look to exploit and ultimately learn from this performance.”
Scotland had contract uncertainty in the buildup to the tournament with the wing Rhona Lloyd saying half of the World Cup squad do not have contracts post-tournament. They have performed well in the pool stage but will have to step it up against England, a team they have not beaten since 1999.
England did show some weaknesses in the game against Australia but the captain Alex Matthews was pleased by the team’s defence.
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“I think it’s the stickiest we have been in that first 40,” Matthews said. “Usually our lineout is spot on, we can play off of that. Soft error count was quite high which we are not used to. I think we needed to be a bit more patient and more direct. Our defence was incredible. To hardly have the ball in that first half and still come in winning [was pleasing].”
