A DIFFICULT WEEK, so it will come as some relief for Tom Tierney and his players to draw a line under this selection controversy and focus purely on rugby [KO 12.45pm, RTÉ 2] this afternoon.
The build-up to this afternoon’s Six Nations clash with France has been overshadowed by a management decision which has frustrated supporters and called into question the IRFU’s vision and strategy for the women’s game.
Whatever way Anthony Eddy — the director of women’s rugby — wants to dress it up, the loss of three key players in Sene Naoupu, Alison Miller and Hannah Tyrrell midway through a campaign is untimely and has left a sour taste in the mouth; it’s also a huge loss for the team.
As Tierney’s side aim to keep their Grand Slam hopes alive at Donnybrook, those three players will be en route to Las Vegas with the Irish sevens team for the latest leg in the World Series.
And as much as the union and players would prefer to concentrate on the game against a powerful French outfit, the reality is that this week has shone the light firmly on the women’s set-up and the decisions of Eddy and Tierney in a negative way.
Come 12.45pm, what happens on the pitch will be of most importance but we may not have heard the last of this, particularly if Ireland — with a much-changed XV again — are exposed in their third, and so far sternest, test of the championship.
Speaking on Thursday evening, Eddy insisted that the developments of the last week has in no way dented morale in the dressing room, despite clear indications from well-placed sources that players were unhappy with the decision at such a crucial juncture in the campaign.
Lindsay Peat reaffirms Eddy’s opinion, and while she didn’t take much notice of what was being said on social media and beyond over the last few days, the prop has urged supporters to put everything to one side and get behind the team today.
“I can see the frustration for people, whether it be inside or outside, but I definitely know inside the camp there is a huge positivity,” she told The42 at the team’s hotel in Dublin.
“If I can stress to anybody, whatever went on this week, a few people got involved and thanks to them for their support, I haven’t really read it to be honest, but I know there has been huge mumblings or whatever.
“All I can stress to people is that if you really want to support Irish rugby and women’s rugby, please come down to Donnybrook and put your arse on a seat for us.
“We want to make it a fortress. I remember going to Perpignan last year and it was like a cauldron, it was like you were being fed to the lions. I want that on Sunday, I want the French to feel that they’re going into an Irish revolution and we’re bringing the fight to them.
“I can’t guarantee the performance because if we beat France by a point then that’s our job done but we’re trying to add the finishing touches to what we’ve shown in the other matches and we have shown some good rugby.”
And that must be the most frustrating element of all this for the players; all the talk, and it has all been negative, has been around who isn’t available rather than who is.
During his media briefing, Eddy repeated the word ‘opportunity’ and explained that the trial and error approach adopted by Tierney in a World Cup year has given players the chance to expose themselves at the highest level and stake a claim for selection.
Today is an opportunity for the 23 involved to prove a point and show that there is depth to this Irish squad, despite losing three crucial components.
“Tom addressed what he needed to address in camp last week and he has that huge respect for us,” Peat continued.
“He addressed it, he moved forward and we moved forward. Unfortunately it’s like a break up, it happens and you deal with it and move on. We have to move on as we’ve huge amounts of work to get through. As much as we’ve lost three very good players, we’ve brought in extremely good players and there’s extremely good players not involved in this squad.
“Without sitting on the fence, whoever gets picked has to come in and do the job they’re meant to do. It’s about the jersey, when I came into this squad and set-up my only focus was to get into the jersey and play for Ireland and represent the country.
“That’s across the board, you either buy into that ethos or you don’t. If you don’t, you won’t be here. It’s dog eat dog at the moment and everyone is just pushing, pushing, pushing. You’re rewarded when you’re performing but I know there are people in there biting at my heals and again it just raises the standard.”
The front row has been the exception with the front row remaining unchanged for the third game in a row. Peat is partnered by Ailis Egan and hooker Leah Lyons with the pack as a whole expected to be in for a difficult afternoon with the French in town.
“We want to show we can put the performances together, learn from our mistakes and then match the bigger nations,” she added.
“We need to be able to respond to going behind but we need to get stuck into them early. They’ve a big physical pack coming in. We need to be physical, get into them early and get into their head.
“I thankfully didn’t see a lot of what has gone on the last week but whatever went on, no matter what selection is made people will always have an opinion and that’s across every sport. People are entitled to that opinion.
“For us, you’re playing for that jersey and you always have a point to prove. We have to prove every week why we’re in that jersey, you’re always being judged on that selection. I like to thrive on that; I like people to question me and I’ll answer it. It’s the best way to drive your performance.”
Ireland (v France):
15. Mairead Coyne
14. Kim Flood
13. Jenny Murphy
12. Claire Mc Laughlin
11. Eimear Considine
10. Nora Stapleton
9. Mary Healy
1. Lindsay Peat
2. Leah Lyons
3. Ailis Egan
4. Sophie Spence
5. Marie-Louise Reilly
6. Ciara Griffin
7. Claire Molloy
8. Paula Fitzpatrick (captain)
Replacements:
16. Ciara O Connor
17. Ilse Van Staden
18. Ruth O’Reilly
19. Ciara Cooney
20. Nichola Fryday
21. Larissa Muldoon
22. Nikki Caughey
23. Louise Galvin
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