AS IF THE prospect of playing in a World Cup for the first time wasn’t enough to set off the butterflies in the stomach, Fiona Tuite’s task was made that little bit more challenging by Ireland head coach Scott Bemand.
Sunday’s pool opener against Japan saw Tuite start at blindside for the first time, shifting to six after making herself a regular presence in the second row under Bemand since debuting in 2023.
“I was so nervous this morning, genuinely,” Tuite said, speaking after helping her team to an impressive six-try win.
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“I sat at a table by myself eating my breakfast. First breakfast was 6.30am and then we had another meal after that so all we’ve been doing was eating all morning. But I sat by myself. I was so nervous.
“Got here, saw the Irish crowd. Warm-up went so well. It was just an incredible experience. I just smiled. I said, ‘You know what? Take it all in. What’s the point in being nervous? Take it in and enjoy it’. And once we got that first score and we started quick, which is what we wanted to do, we were really happy with that and we got going then from there.
“Genuinely an incredible experience. I never thought I’d be here. Dreamt of always being here, but never thought I would be. An incredible experience.”
Embracing the occasion is something Bemand has preached to his players, and the manner of Sunday’s win will only reinforce the renewed sense of belief which has been brewing within the group.
Ireland looked sharp in a number of areas, attacking with purpose and accuracy while delivering some disciplined defensive sets – a particularly pleasing development given some of the scores conceded in warm-up games against Scotland and Canada.
And Tuite made her presence felt in a dominant Irish pack. The Dubliner made 68 metres off nine carries, which was the most of any Irish forward. She also shipped in with eight tackles and marked her World Cup bow with a try.
The score owed much to the sharp thinking of centre Eve Higgins, darting through a gap and side-stepping a defender before offloading to Tuite, who was rewarded for running a good support line. After celebrating the score with her teammates Tuite spotted her family in the crowd, acknowledging the moment with them. The IRFU are flying the players’ families over on the morning of every game at the World Cup.
“I think Eve set me up nicely. An incredibly proud moment. I knew exactly where they were sitting, so I just looked up to the crowd, saw them all there, gave a little wave to them. Because, to be honest, everything I do is for them. This is so important for me, but for my family as well, it’s incredible to have them all here.”
Ireland left Franklin’s Gardens feeling good about themselves but knowing they have areas to clean up. A clunky lineout had a few poor moments in the first half, but there is confidence those errors can be corrected when they return to play Spain on Sunday.
“I was delighted to get the start at six today. We always talk about the back five rather than a front five and a back three, so little bit of change there. A four-man didn’t go exactly to plan as we wanted today, but we fixed [it], went back to our basics and we’re pretty happy then from there.
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“But we’ll have a look at it during the week, (we had) new combinations and stuff like that. So we’ll have a look and see and just make sure it’s fixed for next week.”
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'I dreamt of being here, but never thought I would be'
AS IF THE prospect of playing in a World Cup for the first time wasn’t enough to set off the butterflies in the stomach, Fiona Tuite’s task was made that little bit more challenging by Ireland head coach Scott Bemand.
Sunday’s pool opener against Japan saw Tuite start at blindside for the first time, shifting to six after making herself a regular presence in the second row under Bemand since debuting in 2023.
“I was so nervous this morning, genuinely,” Tuite said, speaking after helping her team to an impressive six-try win.
“I sat at a table by myself eating my breakfast. First breakfast was 6.30am and then we had another meal after that so all we’ve been doing was eating all morning. But I sat by myself. I was so nervous.
“Got here, saw the Irish crowd. Warm-up went so well. It was just an incredible experience. I just smiled. I said, ‘You know what? Take it all in. What’s the point in being nervous? Take it in and enjoy it’. And once we got that first score and we started quick, which is what we wanted to do, we were really happy with that and we got going then from there.
“Genuinely an incredible experience. I never thought I’d be here. Dreamt of always being here, but never thought I would be. An incredible experience.”
Embracing the occasion is something Bemand has preached to his players, and the manner of Sunday’s win will only reinforce the renewed sense of belief which has been brewing within the group.
Ireland looked sharp in a number of areas, attacking with purpose and accuracy while delivering some disciplined defensive sets – a particularly pleasing development given some of the scores conceded in warm-up games against Scotland and Canada.
And Tuite made her presence felt in a dominant Irish pack. The Dubliner made 68 metres off nine carries, which was the most of any Irish forward. She also shipped in with eight tackles and marked her World Cup bow with a try.
The score owed much to the sharp thinking of centre Eve Higgins, darting through a gap and side-stepping a defender before offloading to Tuite, who was rewarded for running a good support line. After celebrating the score with her teammates Tuite spotted her family in the crowd, acknowledging the moment with them. The IRFU are flying the players’ families over on the morning of every game at the World Cup.
“I think Eve set me up nicely. An incredibly proud moment. I knew exactly where they were sitting, so I just looked up to the crowd, saw them all there, gave a little wave to them. Because, to be honest, everything I do is for them. This is so important for me, but for my family as well, it’s incredible to have them all here.”
Ireland left Franklin’s Gardens feeling good about themselves but knowing they have areas to clean up. A clunky lineout had a few poor moments in the first half, but there is confidence those errors can be corrected when they return to play Spain on Sunday.
“I was delighted to get the start at six today. We always talk about the back five rather than a front five and a back three, so little bit of change there. A four-man didn’t go exactly to plan as we wanted today, but we fixed [it], went back to our basics and we’re pretty happy then from there.
“But we’ll have a look at it during the week, (we had) new combinations and stuff like that. So we’ll have a look and see and just make sure it’s fixed for next week.”
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