Kildunne will be a big miss for Quins - Wafer

Ireland forward Aoife Wafer says Ellie Kildunne will be a "big miss" for Harlequins next season but is confident the England star will "make a huge impact wherever she goes next".

Kildunne's departure was announced by Quins last week, with the 2024 World Rugby Women's 15s Player of the Year admitting it was a "shock" to be released.

Wafer, who was named Women's Six Nations Player of the Championship for 2026, paid tribute to her former team-mate who she said was "brilliant to have around the squad".

While the Ireland star is at home in the back row, she feels her game has improved thanks to the influence of 26-year-old full-back Kildunne.

"I've learned a lot about how she sees space and attacks space," Wafer told BBC Sport NI.

"She's known for those line breaks, so [she's helped me learn] that bit of footwork to avoid the collisions.

"She's brilliant to have around, so she's going to be a big miss and the best of luck to her wherever she goes next because I'm sure she'll make a huge impact wherever she goes next."

While Kildunne has departed Quins, the club have confirmed the arrival of two-time World Cup-winner Marlie Packer.

The 36-year-old arrives from Saracens and Wafer "can't wait" to line up alongside the 2023 World Player of the Year in the back row.

"She's incredibly experienced and is an incredible player who's playing some of her best rugby," Wafer said.

"I live with [fellow back row] Alex Callender and learning from her this year has been great to help me up my game to see how she goes about things on the field.

"You learn a lot about the people you play with and what they like to do and how they approach different skill-sets, so I'm just looking forward to learn from her and hopefully we all blend into a really good back row."

Wafer said she is "incredibly honoured" to be the first player to win the Women's Six Nations Player of the Championship award in successive years.

The back row earned 40% of a fans' vote for the 2026 tournament to beat England's Grand Slam-winning captain Meg Jones, Italy back row Francesca Sgorbini and France scrum-half Pauline Bourdon Sansus.

In 2025, Wafer topped the vote ahead of France second row Manae Feleu, England wing Abby Dow and Scotland back row Evie Gallagher.

This year, the 23-year-old started all five games at number eight as Ireland finished third behind England and France for the third year in a row.

The Harlequins player finished the tournament with five tries, surpassing the four she managed in 2025, and made 78 carries, the most of any forward.

"I don't even know what to say," said Wafer.

"Last year I was the first ever Irish woman and the youngest to do it, and to back it up is pretty special.

"The girls back home will agree with me that these sort of things don't happen without them. I'm just grateful that I'm part of an incredible team, and I get to come back to Quins and be a part of an incredible team here too."

Ireland finished third in this year's competition, winning all of their home games against Wales, Italy and Scotland but losing on their travels to England and France.

Wafer feels Ireland are "100%" bridging the gap on the top teams but they still have a little way to go in order to claim a first Women's Six Nations title since 2015.

"Our last couple of fixtures with England have been a bit tighter, but there are bits we still need to get after," she said.

"If you look at the France games, there are three or four occasions where we could or should have beaten them and didn't.

"It's taking lessons from that game and trying to put it into future games as we've spoken about beating Tier One nations."

The British and Irish Lions women's team will embark on their inaugural tour to New Zealand in September 2027 for a three-Test series against the Black Ferns.

Wafer's early ambitions were to represent Ireland, but now the opportunity to be part of a Lions Test squad is "indescribable".

"Growing up in rugby, you dream of the days playing for Ireland in the Aviva [Stadium] which we [Ireland] ticked from this Six Nations.

"You dream of beating the Black Ferns - ticked from a few years ago - and dream of wearing a Lions jersey. That's something I couldn't have achieved before, so to have that in a year is something I can aim towards, but it will be competitive for those back row spots."