It is the familiar plight of the prop – no matter how excellent you are individually, no matter how stable the set-piece platform you set, in sweep the backs with the flashier flicks and tricks to steal the praise and plaudits. It’s just gone eleven o’clock in Sunderland and Hannah Botterman is lamenting the lack of love she and Maud Muir have received in the wake of the Red Roses thrashing of the United States. “Obviously the commentators love Ellie Kildunne, so…” the loosehead moans, only half in jest, after another Player of the Match award ended up in the full-back’s hands.
Not even the news that Kildunne sought to spotlight the impact of the forwards in her post-match utterings provides much solace. “That’s because I told her to!” Botterman chuckles.
