Jodie Cunningham had to have her number drawn on the back of her replacement shirt during England’s defeat to Australia due to an unexpected instruction from the match commissioner, the Rugby Football League (RFL) have explained.

Trailblazing skipper Cunningham, who will retire once England’s World Cup campaign concludes, began Saturday’s game against the Jillaroos on the bench.

Having entered the action in the first half, she had to be withdrawn for a Head Injury Assessment (HIA) just minutes later, with blood pouring following a nasty-looking collision.

Eventually, having passed that HIA, she returned to the field early on in the second half and completed the game as Stuart Barrow’s side were beaten 78-0 by the reigning world champions.

As St Helens icon Cunningham returned though, she did so with her number #14 drawn onto the back of her shirt in marker pen – something which caught plenty of traction on line after the event.

An explanation has now been provided as to just why that happened, with pretty bizarre circumstances.

Why Jodie Cunningham wore a shirt with number drawn on in defeat to Australia

The RFL have confirmed that when Cunningham went off for her HIA, she was required to change into a blood shirt, which is essentially a spare shirt carried by medical departments in case any player gets blood on their original jersey.

That process is no different to Super League, in which a blood shirt is always blank – with no number printed on the back so that it can be used by any player required.

It’s been clarified by the British game’s governing body that it is not stated within the International Rugby League (IRL) rules, and wasn’t stated in the tournament manual for the 2026 Rugby League World Cup, that blood shirts had to be numbered.

However, the match commissioner in the women’s clash between England and Australia informed staff that Cunningham’s blood shirt would have to be numbered as she prepared to re-enter the field of play following her HIA.

Accordingly, a scramble resulted in the improvisation of Cunningham’s #14 being drawn onto the back of her shirt in marker pen.