The Front Row Union Sport - Lock Stock and No Smoking Barrels Part 2: Ireland Women 0 England Women 31

Lock Stock and No Smoking Barrels Part 2: Ireland Women 0 England Women 31

Mar 20, 2011

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Ireland Women completed their RBS Six Nations campaign with a comprehensive loss to England at Ashbourne on Friday night. Though England were strong favourites, going through the competition unbeaten, the Irish girls will be particularly disappointed that they failed to score with the game ending 0 – 31 in England’s favour.

Unless there is an extraordinary result in this afternoon’s match between Scotland and Italy, Ireland will finish in third place, for the third year running, but after narrow defeats to France and Wales it will be a case of what might have been for Ireland’s Women in this campaign.

Both were games that Ireland could have won, and the management will be particularly pleased how the girls “manned up” to a strong French side – but for a missed penalty, the girls could have walked away with an impressive win. In the case of France it would have been an unexpected win snatched from the jaws of defeat, however the loss to Wales will definitely disappoint coaches and players alike as the Ireland side dominated large portions of this game but failed to put the Welsh side away.

On the whole though the series can be regarded as a bit more than just marking time for the Irish side as there were definite improvements to their game and a raft of new players introduced to the international arena. The back line look a lot sharper than this time last year with Niamh Briggs, Lynne Cantwell and Niamh Kavanagh all having a good series and the forwards have added a harder edge to their play with hooker Gill Bourke and the back row of Laura Guest, Claire Molloy and Joy Neville standing out.

From an Ulster perspective the series can be viewed as a definite success with Lauren Day making her return to the International arena after last season’s heartbreaking injury prior to the World Cup. Day featured in all five games and will look to push on next season when she returns to Ulster after a year in England.

Day was joined in the front row by City of Derry’s abrasive hooker Stacey Lea Kennedy who featured in four of the matches and would have got more game time but for the outstanding form of Bourke. It will have been a great learning experience for Kennedy and she’ll be working hard for further involvement in the International set up next season.

However, perhaps the biggest success for Ulster and Ireland will have been the form of Donegal youngster Larissa Muldoon who forced her way into the starting line-up for the England game. Muldoon impressed in her home début against France, where she immediately sped up the Irish back line play with her crisp service at scrum half, and she could be a vital link for Ulster and Ireland in the years to come.

IRELAND WOMEN: Niamh Briggs (Munster), Niamh Kavanagh (Munster), Lynne Cantwell (Exile), Geraldine Rea (Munster), Mairead Kelly (Munster), Nora Stapleton (Leinster), Larissa Muldoon (Exile), Fiona Coghlan (Leinster) (C), Gillian Bourke (Munster), Ailis Egan (Leinster), Heather O’Brien (Munster), Marie Louise Reilly (Leinster), Laura Guest (Munster), Claire Molloy (Connacht), Joy Neville (Munster). Replacements: Stacey Kennedy (Ulster), Lauren Day (Ulster), Deirdre O’Brien (Leinster), Carol Staunton (Connacht), Amy Davis (Leinster), Gillian Nolan (Leinster), Jackie Shiels (Leinster)