Player comparisons: Kildunne stars as England outlast tough France

England are just one win away from 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup glory, defeating France 35-17 at Bristol’s Ashton Gate on Saturday. Ellie Kildunne received Player of the Match honours, with the Red Roses booking a date with Canada next weekend to determine the champion.

Kildunne scored the first try of the afternoon in just the fourth minute, with the fullback gliding down the left sideline to score. But that wasn’t exactly a sign of things to come, with England failing to score another try in the first half.

Nassira Konde opened the scoring for France in the 23^rd minute after some great lead-up play from backs and forwards alike. It was only a two-point game at the break, and the semi-final remained tense right up until the final whistle.

Black Ferns captain Kennedy Tukuafu after defeat to Canada

Black Ferns captain Kennedy Tukuafu after defeat to Canada

Amy Cokayne and Kelly Arbey traded tries early in the second term, before Abbie Ward and Kildunne extended England’s lead. Another Red Roses try in the dying stage, scored by Megan Jones, saw the hosts run away with a strong win in the end.

Knockout

11 - 12

Final

6 - 44

SF1

15 - 16

SF2

17 - 29

QF1

24 - 28

QF2

30 - 24

QF3

28 - 29

QF4

Front row – Advantage England
This positional duel was actually fairly tough to call. At least in the first half, France gave it their absolute all in every area of the field, which included the battle up front. Yllana Brosseau, Agathe Gerin and Rose Bernadou made their mark, but England still had a slight edge.

Bernadou has the equal-most carries out of any player during the first 20 minutes, with the prop running the ball 11 times by the half-time break. Brosseau was impressive in attack, but that was perhaps a reflection of how the first half played out.

France had 65 per cent of possession. If we look at the defensive stats, Maud Muir had recorded more tackles than anyone else during the first 20 minutes. Botterman and Cokayne were equal-sixth at that stage, with all three front-rowers keeping busy as the half went on.

These statistics paint a clear and accurate picture, one that shows Les Bleues unleashed wave after wave of attacking pressure, while the Red Roses stood tall in defence. What separated England’s front row in the end was the set-piece.

England retained possession on seven of eight Cokayne throws during the opening half, while the French hit four of five lineouts on Gerin’s throw – incredibly, scrum-half Pauline Bourdon Sansus was the target at one lineout.

With Hannah Botterman leading the charge, England’s scrum became increasingly dominant in the first half. England won two scrum penalties during the second ‘quarter’ at Ashton Gate, and the team’s reserves also impressed, giving the Red Roses an edge up front.

Second row – Advantage England
England replaced both second rowers at the same time, with Morwenna Talling and Abbie Ward leaving the contest in the 66^th minute. Both locks had put in a memorable shift, with Talling backing up a Player of the Match performance last time out against the Scots.

Talling was a workhorse on the defensive side of the ball, with the No. 4 lock making 19 tackles against a French outfit that played with a lot of possession. While Talling did miss a few other attempts, it shouldn’t overshadow what was another noticeably impactful performance.

Ward was another English player who had reached double digits for tackles completed, but the 32-year-old also made a difference on the scoreboard. With France fighting valiantly for a comeback, Ward scored a crucial five-pointer in the 58^th minute.

As for the French, Madoussou Fall Raclot and Hina Ikahehegi were quite great themselves. With 10 minutes left, Fall Raclot had more carries than anyone else with 16 for 23 metres. Both teams performed well at the set-piece too, which is another tick for the locks.

While this was another tough comparison to make, the Red Roses have a slight advantage, but it could’ve gone either way. Talling and Ward are both world-class, while Rosie Galligan also made a difference as an impact player off the pine.

Back row – Advantage England
As the sporting cliché goes, defence wins championships. It’s often the difference in close Test matches, and it definitely seemed to be a factor on Saturday. The Red Roses trio of Zoe Aldcroft, Sadia Kabeya and Alex Matthews all worked hard on that side of the ball.

It wasn’t an ideal start to the Test for the Red Roses, with Aldcroft dropping the first kick-off with no French players close by – the ball did dip fairly awkwardly it must be said. But by the end of this semi-final, Aldcroft had well and truly left that moment in the past.

Sadia Kabeya was especially impressive, with the openside flanker popping up everywhere around the field. It was no surprise to see Kabeya register the most tackles out of any player on the night, while Aldcroft was close behind in second place and Matthews in fifth.

While the efforts of those three loose forwards gave England yet another slight edge, the work of France’s three starting backrowers shouldn’t go unnoticed. This was perhaps the hardest positional comparison to call.

Charlotte Escudero touched the ball at least three times in the phases leading up to Nassira Konde’s try, with the blindside flanker almost scoring herself. Escudero delivered a quick pass to Agathe Gerin, who sent Konde over for Les Bleues first try.

Lea Champon won a pilfer penalty late in the first half, and Teani Feleu had the most carries out of any player on the night. Again, this was a tough call to make. While England had a slight edge in this area of the park, France were very good as well.

Halfbacks – Advantage France
England may have won the match but the French halves pairing of Pauline Bourdon Sansus and Carla Arbez were still really solid. Bourdon Sansus has been lively and effective for Les Bleues throughout the World Cup, and that high standard of play continued in this Test.

Bourdon Sansus was brought into the starting side for France’s clash with Brazil at Sandy Park in Exeter a few weeks ago, and the scrum-half has been superb ever since. Against the Red Roses, it seemed something special could happen whenever Bourdon Sansus was near the ball.

France almost scored from absolutely nowhere during the first half, after a box kick from the No. 9 was partially charged down. The ball fell into the arms of Marine Menager, who couldn’t quite get an offload off for what would’ve been a certain try.

Of course, there was a bit of luck in that, but it was that type of night from Bourdon Sansus. With quick passing and clever decision making, Bourdon Sansus was able to help drive France around the park, as they brought their A-game to Bristol.

Abez also deserves some credit for France’s attacking play, after the playmaker was promoted to the First XV for the semi-final. England’s halves pairing of Natasha Hunt and Zoe Harrison were also good, but let’s give France credit where credit is due.

Centres – Advantage France
Nassira Konde scored two tries which seemed to give France a slight advantage over England in the centres at first glance, but the defensive efforts of Meg Jones were game-changing.

Player of the Match Ellie Kildunne gave Jones a shoutout after the Test, which just goes to show how important those 19 tackles were. Jones was great in attack, which included a large kick downfield in the first half.

Joens lined up opposite Konde, who worked hard to be in the correct position when it counted. Les Bleues reaped the rewards of Konde’s attacking on two occasions, with the No. 13 touching down for two decisive tries.

At inside centre, France’s Gabrielle Vernier lined up opposite England’s Tatyana Heard. Vernier made more tackles than any other Frenchwoman, with the second-best Les Bleues player finishing with nine stops on the defensive side of the ball.

Heard had some good moments as well, especially in attack, but the French duo of Vernier and Konde was next level. As a collective, they covered both attack and defence to a high standard, and that’s why they have the advantage here.

Back three – Advantage France
Whenever Ellie Kildunne touched the ball, the Bristol crowd let out a truly deafening cheer. After missing last weekend’s quarter-final against the Scots, Kildunne returned to the starting side, and the reigning World Rugby Player of the Year was utterly brilliant.

Kildunne’s first carry was about three minutes in, with the outside back beating a few defenders during a 30 metre carry upfield. It wasn’t long until Kildunne got the ball again, with the 26-year-old racing away about 50 metres down the left sideline to score the opening try.

With about 80 carry metres and a try inside the first five minutes, it would’ve been impossible to critique the star fullback’s red-hot start to the semi-final. That was a sign of what was to come, with Kildunne looking dangerous every time she touched the ball.

If you were to select a ‘dream team’ from this semi-final, everyone would have Kildunne in that side – there’s no doubt. But to complete that hypothetical XV with the two wingers, the French duo of Marine Menager and Kelly Arbey would deserve a place.

Both wingers were involved in the lead-up to Nassira Konde’s try in the first half. Arbey enjoyed a break down the left edge, before Menager threw a superb offload to Charlotte Escudero which kept the play alive.

Arbey scored a try during the second half, and had the second-most running metres out of any player with 15 to play, clocking in with 95. Menager was third with 85, while France fullback Morgane Bourgeois also stood out with more than 45.