IRELAND CENTRE SENE Naoupu has announced her retirement from international rugby.
Sene, 38, moved to Ireland in 2009 when her husband, George Naoupu, joined Connacht from Hawke’s Bay in the Naoupus’ native New Zealand.
Six years later, she made her 15s debut for her adopted country away to Italy in the Six Nations, also featuring for the first time for the Ireland sevens team in Dubai that same year.
Naoupu went on to earn 48 caps for Ireland in the 15s code, scoring six international tries and lining out at the 2017 World Cup. Her final cap came back in April during the Six Nations victory over Scotland.
Thanks Sene. An incredible career in the green jersey and a wonderful ambassador for the game. @SeneNaoupu has announced her retirement from international rugby. #NothingLikeIt pic.twitter.com/Gb0LVhrFV2
— Irish Rugby (@IrishRugby) August 15, 2022
“I look back to when we first came to Ireland in 2009 to Galway, I had the privilege of moving to Ireland as a supportive rugby wife and I never expected years later to be a rugby international,” Naoupu told Nathan Johns in an interview published in The Irish Times today.
“I’ve been involved in the national programme for the last 10 years and I’ve given all I can. Like the other girls I’ve dedicated my heart and soul to serve the team in the green jersey and I consider it a privilege that I get to retire on my own terms. I’m at peace to evolve away from the international stage as a player, knowing I gave it everything I had.
“I want to acknowledge the giants of Irish rugby whose shoulders we stood on, I got to play alongside some of those Irish rugby legends.
I genuinely wanted to thank Ireland for accepting me, for accepting me as their own and embracing me as a custodian of the green jersey. It really was a privilege to play for Ireland and earn the right to represent you on the world stage. While I’m very proud of where I come from I’m also very proud to be Irish, that means everything to me and my family.
Naoupu won a Six Nations during her first season with Ireland and, a year later, in 2016, was voted the Rugby Writers of Ireland Women’s Player of the Year.
