Women’s 15s World Player of the Year and Red Roses star Ellie Kildunne talks groundbreaking new Canterbury and PWR deal 

Having already been sponsored by Canterbury for the past few years, Kildunne had a lot of pride about being partnered with a manufacturer willing to invest in the PWR.

Speaking to Ruck, she said:

“I think it's absolutely massive I'm very proud to be part of Canterbury as an ambassador at this point. And at points before but I think this is a real game changer.

“It's given everyone the same opportunity that the people who have got sponsors and personal sponsors, have to have elite boots, to have the tools that will help going forward and training and playing.

“To not have to tape up your boots nor have to think about buying the next pair.

“It's brilliant to be part of a sponsorship and a brand that wants to support female players because we need it.

People have been saying it for a long time and now they've put the money where their mouth is and everyone has got boots in the PWR, which is an incredible thing for them to do.”

With plenty of cases of potentially treatable leg injuries taking its toll on the PWR due to the lack of funding previously available for new boots, Ellie spoke about some of the issues her and her colleagues have faced in the past with regards to lacking availability of rugby boots.

“Boots are expensive, good boots are very expensive, and it wouldn't be until a Christmas present or a birthday present that I would get a new pair.

“There's been times that I've seen like there's girls that are taping up their boots, just being able to play with boots that are functional is difficult at times.

“They are our tools at the end of the day and when the technology in boots is getting more and more, that comes with a price, but that price doesn't follow the amount that that players' make as females.

“I think that it is brilliant to be able to get boots within the PWR, three boots per player is incredible because if one breaks which it will happen in contact sport, we train a lot, we play a lot, you can just wear the other pair you don't have to think about it you don't have to worry about it.

“It just gives everyone equal opportunity to play the best rugby that they can play.”

The campaign has been seen as being less about the boots themselves and more about the message it sends, Kildunne talked about what the impact is going to be on future generations of female rugby players.

“ I think this campaign will show the other brands out there that there is opportunity in the women's game.

“I think you'll see the benefits that this will have to the Prem, to the level of rugby. Other brands will see that if such a big brand like Canterbury can have a game-changing moment where they have done what they've said, they've seen where there's potentially room to grow and they've gone out and done it.

“Other brands now will have to compete with that and for the next generation coming through, they will have more opportunity with brands that want to help for the women's game.

“They (the other brands) will listen to the areas of the game that need work on and they will work to make sure that that gap is closed. And that will only reap its benefits going into the next generations.”