England women's rugby superstar issues Red Roses rallying cry after World Cup glory

World Cup winner Ellie Kildunne insists she is not finished smashing through glass ceilings as she bids to elevate the women's rugby to even greater heights .

At 26, the England and Harlequins superstar has already experienced a career most players dream of, being named World Rugby Player of the Year in 2024 before following that up with a winners' medal at last weekend's World Cup final, where she was one of four England players to score as the Red Roses defeated Canada 33-13 at Allianz Stadium.

Though her name in is safely enshrined in Red Roses folklore, Kildunne is bidding to have made an even greater impact on the game by the time it comes for her to hang up her boots.

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"We still want to keep the game growing and I’ll say this forever," said Kildunne. "It’s the same with England. I want England to keep growing. I never want anyone to feel like they've done the most they can out of something.

"Everything’s a glass ceiling in my eyes and you can always make improvements. There are moments in that final that I’m playing through my head where I think I should’ve done this even though we won. I know I can get better, the team can get better, and I’ll keep striving for better until the day I retire, and I'll probably try to do that after as well.

"For now, it's about going back to the training ground and using the momentum that we’ve got to inspire the nation and make rugby better for everybody girls and boys and show that we’re here to make change. We’re not just here to dip in and out."

Kildunne was speaking at Bracknell Rugby Club for the launch of RugbyFest, a nationwide celebration of rugby designed by the RFU and taking place between 3-6 October.

There, she was joined by teammate Marlie Packer, 2014 World Cup winner Maggie Alphonsi and former England international and British & Irish Lion Ugo Monye, with the quartet lending their considerable knowledge and experience to help inspire the rugby stars of tomorrow.

RugbyFest is part of the RFU’s World Cup legacy programme, Impact ’25, and is supported by the National Lottery.

The Impact ’25 programme sees over £14.55m of government funding committed to the sport in England and the home unions up to the end of March 2026, creating more opportunities for women and girls to get involved in rugby.

"It’s a cool position to be in, to inspire people and be a role model and I’ll keep doing that in an authentic way," added Kildunne. "As long as I stay authentic to myself and my values and speak my story of rugby, I hope that inspires people to try and follow the same path that I have.

"I didn’t aspire to be anyone. I just knew that I loved the sport. We want it to be bigger and better for everybody and that’s not just when we’re on the international stage. We want it to better in the grassroots so that more girls are involved and there’s more teams and more competitive play.

"That’s going to make the next generation of Red Roses even better than the one we see today."

With hundreds of events already registered, it is set to be one of the biggest grassroots activations in the sport’s history. Young people looking to get involved can visit FindRugby.com to discover RugbyFest events near them and potentially take the first step towards pulling on an England shirt.