Ellie Kildunne was acclaimed as “special” by England head coach John Mitchell after she conjured two sensational finishes to help clinch a place in next Saturday’s World Cup final.
The Red Roses will meet Canada at Allianz Stadium after emerging from their first true test of the tournament against an outstanding France side with a 35-17 victory.
A hard-fought win was founded on the graft of the defence, but it was the individual brilliance of England’s free-spirited 26-year-old full-back that lit up the semi-final in Bristol.
“Ellis’s special and she deserves her accolades as last year’s world player of the year,” Mitchell said.
“She’s still very, very young. Everyone puts her on a poster but she’s a very humble girl. She does photography and other bits and pieces – she just loves being creative.
“She’s not a woman who you box. She’s inspired by autonomy. She only needs a little bit of structure.
“She’s dealing with life very well because she’s put on a pedestal and that’s quite new to her in her life.
“It’s really important that we support in that space but also allow her to chase her goals.”
England captain Zoe Aldcroft echoed her coach’s view as Kildunne made a stunning return the concussion that forced her to miss the quarter-final victory over Scotland.
“Elle is absolutely electric. She can make something out of nothing,” Aldcroft said.
The final will be a battle between Mitchell’s tournament favourites and the team ranked second in the world, who toppled New Zealand in a gripping upset on Friday night.
“Two really good sides in the final – number one in the world and number two and they both deserve to be there. It’s awesome for the game,” Mitchell said.
“Our girls are so driven to be better. To get yourself out of a difficult performance like they did against France is a credit to them.
“Defensively, in the middle of the field we were very good. There was some courage and a lot of heart shown there.
“We just had to win and fight our way out of it. We were nice and calm at half-time. It will do us a lot of good, that.
“This occasion does create different pressures and emotions and you just have to be able to handle it.”
France captain Marine Menager was also full of admiration for Kildunne.
“She’s a truly great player. On every ball she’s capable of pulling something off, making the right move at the right time. We all know it and she has shown it again,” Menager said.
“England played very hard. Every opportunity they had they scored tries, so it’s very hard to play against them.”
