Kildunne moved to bench as England make multiple changes after Canada defeat
Ellie Kildunne has been moved to the bench by England after the Red Roses' 24-21 defeat by Canada in Toronto last Friday, with head coach John Mitchell making a series of changes ahead of Saturday's rematch in Ottawa (00:00 BST).
Kildunne made more metres (149) and clean breaks (two) and beat more defenders (six) than any other England player in the defeat as a late Canada fightback ended the Red Roses' unbeaten run at 41 matches. Mitchell said: "Last Friday, we lost sight of what we could control when it mattered most. That's on us to fix." He added: "This week is about getting back to who we are - hungry, accountable to each other and demanding more of ourselves than anyone outside this group ever could."
Emma Sing has been named at full-back in place of Kildunne for Saturday's rematch (00:00 BST) against Canada in Ottawa, while Tatyana Heard and Claudia Moloney-MacDonald, who were backline starters in the defeat, drop out of the matchday squad entirely. Helena Rowland and Mia Venner come into the starting XV at inside centre and on the wing respectively.
In the fourth alteration to the starting line-up, Sadia Kabeya, who appeared off the bench last week on her comeback from a leg injury, is promoted to the run-on side and Alex Matthews, two-time Rugby World Cup winner, is moved to the bench. Exeter's Flo Robinson and Sale's Hollie Aitchison are named among the replacements as part of what the selectors described as a new-look set of half-back options.
Sing, described in the selection notes as a rangy runner who can also kick goals, started two matches at full-back during England's Six Nations campaign; Kildunne switched to a different position on the wing on each occasion. Sing's Gloucester-Hartpury team-mate Mia Venner made her England debut in 2020 aged just 17, has won only another four caps since, and appeared in the wins over Scotland and Italy at the start of this year.
The selectors also highlighted Venner's scoring form: "The 24-year-old finished as the PWR's joint top try-scorer last season, crossing 12 times." Claudia Moloney-MacDonald was involved in a costly moment in the loss to Canada when, after picking Jess Breach's pass off her toes, she spilled the ball over the line in the sixth minute.
Mitchell reiterated the need for response, saying: "We've earned a strong period but nothing about it is owed to us going forward." He added: "Friday [Saturday 00:00 BST] is an opportunity to apply sustained pressure, learn from what we missed and come out the other side better than we went in."
The Red Roses' match against Canada is scheduled for Saturday, 24 October at 00:10 BST and will be shown live on BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website and app. England's named XV is: Sing; Breach, Jones, Rowland, Venner; Harrison, Packer; Botterman, Cokayne, Bern, Talling, Ives Campion, Burton, Kabeya, Feaunati. Replacements: Field, Carson, Muir, Short, Matthews, Robinson, Aitchison, Kildunne.