AFTER A COUPLE of extremely difficult and disheartening years for the Ireland Women’s team, there is renewed hope the squad are slowly tracking in the right direction again.
That might sound odd given Scott Bemand’s side opened their Six Nations campaign with a 38-17 loss to France last weekend, but given where this team is coming from, there were enough positive signs dotted across the performance to suggest better times might be on the horizon.
Having finished winless and fifth in last year’s Six Nations, against France the visitors looked better physically conditioned to deal with the demands of international rugby – one of the most notable benefits of being 12 months further down the line with fully professional contacts, introduced for women’s 15s players in Ireland for the first time in late 2022.
While Ireland shipped five tries in Le Mans and will be disappointed in the manner in which some of those scores were conceded, the defence were perhaps the most impressive part of their performance.
Against a French side who were heavily fancied to secure a bonus-point win, Ireland recovered well from leaking a try within the opening three minutes, tackling hard and remaining competitive for the full 80. When France came to Cork last year, Ireland were hit for nine tries in a 53-3 defeat. Here, they limited the damage to five while their missed tackle count dropped from 43 to 17.
It’s far from where they want to be, but it’s progress nonetheless. This was a welcome, spirited display from a team who believe they are capable of more as they continue to get familiar with a new coaching team, and new ideas.
Bemand joined last summer ahead of the WXV3 competition – which Ireland won – and soon added defence coach Declan Danaher to his staff.
Danaher spent 24 years as a player and coach with London Irish, with this new job his first step into the women’s game. One game into his first Six Nations campaign, Danaher is pleased with what he’s seeing from his players.
“I’m only here six or seven weeks, I’ve seen a massive step up from the first week I was here and getting to meet the girls,” he says.
“I can see the progress that’s happening. You can see it at training, we want and Scott wants training to be incredibly competitive. We know if we can compete at training and driving the standards there, you probably then start to see performances like you did at the weekend.
“You can see it as a glass full or a glass half-empty [way] but there’s still a long way to go. Isn’t that the nice thing? You’re not at the end, you can see that, and if it is, we continue to grow all of our game.”
After the France game it was interesting to hear some of the Ireland players talk about their ‘love’ of defending. Creating that mindset was something Danaher was conscious of when he began introducing the group to his defensive system.
“I have got to know the group, they are a real mix which is the beauty of any group and I have enjoyed working with them. There are older and younger players but in any defensive system you pull on that jersey and it doesn’t matter the area of the game because you have to throw yourself into it.
“For some that defence will come a little bit easier, like Neve [Jones] with those 20-plus tackles [v France], and they are all different.
“It’s how I dial that up for some and express its importance for the team. I have had a real buy-in from the group and I have made a real effort to get to know them individually as well so you get to have those interactions and maybe then they start to potentially care about an important area, but one that is only a part of the overall game. I take as much joy in what we do in the attacking game. I would love for us to be all-round at the weekend.”
And that’s the big challenge facing this Irish team as they prepare to welcome Italy to the RDS on Sunday [KO 3pm, RTÉ]. While the defence showed up well against France, the attack didn’t fire enough shots to make the game truly competitive.
The Italians opened their own campaign with a 48-0 defeat to England but have proved sticky opponents for Ireland in the past, so this fixture will provide a better indication of where Ireland stand and could set the tone for the rest of the tournament. When the sides met in Parma last year, Italy won 24-7. In 2022, Ireland were 29-8 winners in Cork.
Win this weekend, and Ireland can point to tangible progress. Lose, and the pressure rises heading into games against Wales (home), England (away) and Scotland (home).
Against Italy, Ireland should have more room to play so the aim is to now build on their encouraging defensive display with a more ambitious approach in attack.
“It’s not just about defence, if the attack comes better, it takes pressure off the attack and setpiece,” Bemand says.
“It’s all marrying up the different areas so that we get an all-round performance that you can put out at the weekend and you’re proud of.
“I was reflecting yesterday on things I could have done better in those four weeks [before France] and you’re trying to simplify it and amplify it so that you can go out and put in a performance and that the girls understand it, which I think they’ve done.
“They’re hungry to defend, they want to get that, and then it’s adding in the small bits of detail that don’t overload them so they go into the weekend and they’re not thinking anymore, you just want them to go out and flow and do, whether that’s in attack or defence.
“That’s a skill, and I’m not saying I haven’t got it, but it’s probably just how do I dial it up and down with a new group.”
