Image source, Getty Images. ByAlastair Telfer. BBC Sport journalist. 18 minutes ago. England full-back Ellie Kildunne has admitted feeling “really alone” after experiencing an emotional dip following the Red Roses’ Rugby World Cup win.. The pre-tournament star delivered by scoring a brilliant solo try in England’s final victory over Canada at a sold-out 82,000-capacity Allianz Stadium in September.. Four weeks on from winning England’s first World Cup in 11 years, Kildunne returned to club action for Harlequins in front of 2,929 fans at Twickenham Stoop against Loughborough Lightning.. “You are playing in front of a sold-out crowd at Allianz, you have just won a World Cup, and the next minute you are back playing over the road in front of a slither of the amount of people,” the 26-year-old told BBC Sport.. “There was that little bit of a dip in ‘why I am doing this?’ I always say it is for the happiness and inspiring people and every room I walk into.. “My expectation gets higher of myself all the time. If I played 8/10 then I feel I might as well have played 2/10. I am going to have the highest standards for myself to keep on striving to get better.. “I needed to rework that out – how am I going to keep pushing myself from within, to keep wanting to do my best and stay completely focused.. “I went from playing Guitar Hero every night with my team-mates to going back to living on my own in Reading. Suddenly I was like ‘wow, I feel really alone’.. “There is going to be good and bad emotions and things that I want to talk about. Like a dip, which is natural after a peak, but who do I talk to?. “It made me value the times that I have got with people.”. Dahl, Torres and ‘Keighley Queens’ – the making of Kildunne. 27 September 2025. Female coaches make huge difference – Scarratt. 2 days ago. Women’s Six Nations guide: Fixtures and BBC coverage. 1 day ago. England v Ireland. Women’s Six Nations. Saturday, 11 April, kick-off 14:25 BST. Allianz Stadium. Watch live on BBC One, iPlayer and online; updates on BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Sounds; live text and video highlights on BBC Sport website and app. The 2024 World Rugby women’s player of the year maintained her impressive form throughout last year, but missed the World Cup quarter-final victory over Scotland after sustaining a concussion in England’s final pool-stage win over Australia.. Kildunne, who departed shortly after half-time, had struggled against the Wallaroos and made a number of uncharacteristic errors.. She was recalled for the semi-final against France and scored twice – including another remarkable solo try – to banish any doubts over her form before the final.. “I look back at moments in that World Cup, and I probably didn’t have my best game against Australia for quite a few reasons,” Kildunne said.. “Then, obviously, I got concussed, which added the pressure back on. Am I going to get back? Am I getting back for a semi-final, or am I going to get back for a final? We needed to see how fa
