Glasgow Warriors score their third try to reduce the interval deficit to five points (Pic: Colin Molloy)
RICHARD BULLICK
ALANA McInerney bagged a brace of tries and Caitriona Finn picked up Player of the Match, but young Ulsterwoman Sadhbh McGrath’s herculean contribution to last Sunday’s high-scoring Clovers victory over Glasgow Warriors in Belfast can’t be overstated.
Having gone behind to an early try by the Scottish visitors, Clovers clinched their bonus point in the opening period and, although Glasgow fought back to trail just 24-19 at the break, the Irish hosts pulled away to record an impressive 57-31 victory.
Although just 21, Ireland prop McGrath is actually one of the more experienced campaigners in a Clovers outfit forced to manage without several of their leading lights, and Sadhbh has happily shouldered extra responsibility while making her physically imposing presence count.
The always-available Buncrana bulldozer’s plethora of ferocious carries constantly got Clovers on the front foot and, having helped provide the impetus for a couple of other tries, McGrath forced her way over the whitewash for her team’s fifth touchdown.
She will make her fifth consecutive start of this Celtic Challenge campaign on Sunday when Clovers host Brython Thunder at Cork’s Virgin Media Park (12 noon, BBC iPlayer/TG4) and few would bet against the Donegal powerhouse adding to her useful tally of three tries to date.
Sadhbh is officially listed as vice-captain to her fellow Irish international Emily Lane, who has also been ever-present in the Clovers starting side through the first half of the current competition, but there are only four capped players in the team to take on Brython.
That quartet includes fullback Aoife Corey, whose sole Ireland appearance to date came in the final fixture of last season’s Six Nations, and loosehead Siobhan McCarthy, who comes back into the run-on line-up after featuring off the bench against Glasgow.
The four personnel changes to the team that started at Ravenhill include Clare native McCarthy and Lyndsay Clarke of Ennis RFC swapping places with Ella Burns and Lucia Linn, who both drop to the replacements panel.
Clovers and Glasgow Warriors compete for possession in a lineout at Ravenhill (Pic: Colin Molloy)
The diminutive Emily Foley continues on the right wing in place of 5’11” Irish international Anna McGann, whom she took over from at half-time in Belfast last day, and Annakate Cournane comes in for the injured Jane Clohessy with Faith Oviawe switching to lock.
Orlaith Morrissey returns to the matchday squad as Sadhbh McGrath’s tighthead understudy while the switch to a 6:2 bench split sees Caoimhe Murphy and newcomer Aoife Grimes brought into the 23 for internationals Clohessy and McGann.
Among the eminent names from the squad announced ahead of this Celtic Challenge who haven’t featured to date are the two women who shared the Clovers captaincy last season, centre Enya Breen and sevens legend Amee-Leigh Costigan, plus flyhalf Kate Flannery.
The same applies to Ireland lock Ruth Campbell, World Cup panellist Ivana Kiripati and another young back row who won her first cap in last August’s World Cup warm-up match against Scotland in Cork, Ailish Quinn.
The current absentee list also includes McGann, international fullback Meabh Deely, World Cup squad hooker Beth Buttimer, Clohessy and athletic lock Aoibhe O’Flynn, so Denis Fogarty’s resources are considerably stretched.
When Clovers beat Wolfhounds in their Irish derby battle at Belfield Bowl last Christmas, the pack included not only Buttimer, Campbell and Kiripati but also Jane Neill, the then Ireland captain Edel McMahon – made available by Exeter Chiefs – and Deirbhile Nic a Bhaird.
A shock omission from the World Cup squad, Nic a Bhaird stepped back from representative rugby after this season’s interpros while, like McMahon, the Ireland Under 20s captain of the past two summers, Neill, is out injured now.
So Neill is not part of the current Clovers squad along with fellow long-term lay-off Hannah Clarke – the young flying winger who scored a breakaway try that day – Chisom Ugwueru, Ellen Boylan and Clare Gorman.
Big tighthead prop Sophie Barrett has gone back to Wolfhounds, who have also acquired the services of this season’s interpro title-winning Munster skipper Maeve Og O’Leary and Connacht’s first-choice Ireland scrumhalf Aoibheann Reilly.
So to some extent the affable Fogarty has been down to the bare bones, but the upshot has been that others have had to step up, whether that be to take leadership responsibility or just be brave to grab opportunities presenting themselves earlier than might have been the case.
Fullback Aoife Corey scores the final try for Clovers against Glasgow Warriors (Pic: Colin Molloy)
Olympian Lane and Sadhbh McGrath have made their experience count, while the latter’s lesser-known namesake Aoibheann McGrath is an example of someone who has seized her chance with a Player of the Match performance against Brython at Cardiff Arms Park.
Tall centre Niamh Murphy has been another eye-catching newcomer, while young outhalf Finn has steered the ship superbly and particular mention must go to the back row unit which would be unchanged for a fifth game but for Owiawe being needed in the engineroom.
Connacht’s teenage No 8 Jemima Adams-Verling has been superb, thoroughly justifying her call-up to Ireland’s recent camp, which also featured blindside flanker Rosie Searle for the first time on the back of her performances for Clovers.
The first fixture at Ravenhill last Sunday provided the disappointingly small attendance with the opportunity to watch some of Ireland’s biggest stars strut their stuff as champions Wolfhounds obliterated Brython Thunder on a 69-0 scoreline.
But the second game of the double-header was an intriguing glimpse of what is bubbling below in terms of Ireland’s depth chart, and there was much to admire from a very enjoyable game which produced an aggregate of 88 points and featured 14 tries.
This campaign must be pretty satisfying so far for Fogarty, who has seen his side dig deep to come out the right side of tight games against Gwalia Lightning in Dublin and in Cardiff against a Brython Thunder team bolstered by an influx of English-based stars.
Clovers certainly weren’t flattered by the scoreline in their only defeat, when going down 24-7 to Wolfhounds on the first Saturday of 2026, and the performance against Glasgow was their best in the current competition to date.
Compared to the previous Sunday’s game in Wales, Fogarty’s starting team to take on Glasgow showed three changes, Corey coming in for Deely at fullback, McInerney taking over from Foley on the left wing and Uillin Eilian replacing the injured Buttimer at hooker.
One notable new face on the Clovers bench was occasional Ireland squad scrumhalf Katie Whelan, who had featured for Wolfhounds the previous Saturday before being transferred from one IRFU team to the other.
Whelan was to mark her first Clovers appearance with one of seven tries scored by backs – supplemented by touchdowns from both McGraths in the tight five – while Finn finished with a personal tally of 17 points including half a dozen successful conversions.
Centre Niamh Murphy scores a try in the Clovers victory over Glasgow Warriors (Pic: Colin Molloy)
Glasgow’s Nicole Flynn was sinbinned in the opening minute for a high-tackle on Finn as she ran back the kick-off but the visitors went ahead while down to 14 players as her fellow centre Briar McNamara hacked on a loose ball and got the touchdown.
The conversion was added by flyhalf Ceitidh Ainsworth but Clovers responded with a try on 12 minutes, Murphy making a nice initial break over halfway, Sadhbh McGrath charging like a bull and namesake Aoibheann taking play to the opposition 22.
After Sadhbh showed nice soft hands in slipping possession to centre Lucia Linn, Corey carved through to 10 metres out, Ulster’s McGrath made another monstrous carry and Finn’s nice cut-out pass put winger McInerney over in the left corner for an unconverted try.
There was a great period of pressure from Clovers midway through the half which eventually led to scoreboard reward when Finn picked up and plunged over wide on the left after Glasgow just ran out of defenders.
The siege had begun on the other side before both McGraths carried hard, Linn displayed deft footwork and Corey threatened after a flick-on from Oviawe, who later received a pop pass from captain Lane and Finn finished after Murphy was tackled just short.
Again Finn was off-target with the difficult conversion attempt but the hosts were now in front and the young outhalf was doing a good job keeping play in opposition territory with her long, raking kicks.
That was just as well for Glasgow were looking dangerous enough, especially when moving the ball quickly off their slick lineouts, but things got worse for the visitors with the concession of two tries in three minutes either side of the half hour mark.
McInerney cut right through off her left wing, the ball was moved to McGann wide on the right and that long arm came out to ground brilliantly by the corner flag in shades of one of the tries she scored at the other end of this ground for Ireland against Canada last August.
The normally poker-faced Finn allowed herself a smile as she ran back after kicking an excellent touchline conversion and the Clovers No 10 was soon raising the flags again, this time with a strike from the other side after a try she had a big hand in.
The second of two stampeding bursts by Sadhbh McGrath within the same passage of play gave Clovers so much momentum and Linn pulled the ball back for Finn who delivered a sublime long pass from which McInerney finished strongly for her second try of the day.
So the hosts had their four-try bonus-point in the bag by the 33rd minute but there was still time in the opening period for Glasgow to strike twice, firstly when youthful fullback Poppy Mellanby ran back a Finn clearance and put Flynn away to score.
The Warriors crossed again from the final play of the half, their No 8 Emily Coubrough catching Clovers napping slightly to go again after being tackled initially, and Ainsworth converted to make it 24-19 at the interval.
When play resumed, Foley had replaced McGann – who had been on the field for every minute of the Clovers campaign up until then – and Fogarty was forced into another change almost immediately.
Ulster’s Sadhbh McGrath on another rampaging run for Clovers against Glasgow (Pic: Colin Molloy)
After a prolonged stoppage, Clohessy left on the medical cart receiving oxygen having sustained what appeared a serious arm injury, with Amelia Green coming on to take the stricken lock’s place.
Corey broke up the blindside and tried to put McInerney away but her wayward pass out of a tackle went into touch and there was still just five points between the teams when McCarthy replaced loosehead Ella Burns after the latter had put in a strong shift.
A great rip in contact by Adams-Verling, followed by her lovely offload to Lane got Clovers knocking on the door a few metres out and Sadhbh McGrath showed unstoppable power to force her way over with half an hour remaining, Finn sending over another fine conversion.
The next Clovers try came just before the hour mark, Finn going to touch with a breakdown penalty and Fogarty’s women making ground down the left touchline initially from the lineout 17 metres out.
Replacement Lyndsay Clarke confidently looped Oviawe and Murphy took a nice line before exhibiting her athleticism and pace followed by a good finish as she broke two tackles and stretched out to score. Finn’s conversion made it 38-19 midway through the second half.
Whelan came on for Lane so, with nominated vice-captain Clohessy already gone, Sadhbh McGrath became the on-field leader until her own departure after which a combination of Finn and last summer’s Ireland U20 vice-captain Adams-Verling seemed to call the shots.
A wonderful dancing break in-field from Foley eventually led to replacement hooker Saoirse Crowe being held up, but the goal-line dropout didn’t bring much reprieve for the black-clad Scottish side.
Corey ran back at them, McCarthy and Crowe carried, and the attack continued until Whelan fed Sadhbh McGrath from a tap penalty and ruthless ruck-cleaning by McCarthy and Adams-Verling gave the replacement scrumhalf the opening to snipe over from close-range.
Finn converted but then put her clearance out on the full after Aoibheann McGrath had caught the Glasgow Warriors restart and Clovers were pinned in their own territory until the conceded the try which clinched a deserved bonus-point for the visitors.
There was a great rip near her own line by replacement prop Hannah Coen, who had come on for Sadhbh McGrath, but Glasgow got an opportunistic try when Whelan dithered slightly behind her own line and Warriors co-captain Holland Bogan took advantage.
Clovers reached their half-century thanks in no small measure to the outstanding Adams-Verling, who straightened an attack before giving a lovely offload to Aoibheann McGrath and the big second row stormed home for a try on 74 minutes which Finn converted.
There was still time for one more score apiece, Glasgow striking first with another try by Flynn, who crossed despite the attentions of Oviawe and Clarke, with Ainsworth adding her third conversion of the match.
Player of the Match Caitriona Finn kicks a conversion on her way to 17 points (Pic: Colin Molloy)
Clovers had the last word of an uplifting afternoon though, after Adams-Verling and Finn took the decision to opt for a scrum rather than a tap or kick to the corner when Glasgow gave away a scrum penalty some 35 metres from their own line.
They initially went left with Foley injecting pace coming off her wing, Adams-Verling battled forward, Cournane carried and then Clarke pulled the ball back for Finn, who gave a long pass to McInerney and she put Corey over in the right corner.
McInerney deserves credit for not being greedy by trying to clinch her hat-trick and instead she was happy to celebrate with her best pal Corey for whom the touchdown was a positive end to a week in which she had been left out of the Ireland training camp.
The final whistle went when Finn’s conversion attempt shaved past the near upright to go with her two misses in the first quarter but the outhalf had landed six on the trot in between and afterwards declared herself happy with how she had been striking the ball.
Fogarty was pleased with his side’s intensity throughout, having felt they had lacked sufficient physicality in the opening period the previous Sunday in Cardiff, saying that “everybody brought the edge today and that enabled us to pull the trigger at the right times.”
The Clovers supremo praised the contribution of his bench, most of whom got generous game-time, and he stressed the importance of building depth in the playing group by providing opportunities and exposing players in the elite environment.
Despite their hammering at the hands of star-studded Wolfhounds, Brython will be bursting for another crack at less-experienced Clovers this Sunday and they have giant Gloucester Hartpury prop Sisilia Tuipulotu available for the Cork clash.
CLOVERS (v Glasgow Warriors): Aoife Corey; Anna McGann (Emily Foley, ht), Niamh Murphy, Lucia Linn (Lyndsay Clarke, 48), Alana McInerney; Caitriona Finn, Emily Lane (capt; Katie Whelan, 60); Ella Burns (Siobhan McCarthy, 48), Uillin Eilian (Saoirse Crowe, 48), Sadhbh McGrath (Hannah Coen, 67), Aoibheann McGrath, Jane Clohessy (Amelia Green, 42), Rosie Searle (Annakate Cournane, 60), Faith Oviawe, Jemima Adams-Verling.
Clovers skipper Emily Lane passes from the base of a scrum against Glasgow (Pic: Colin Molloy)
Meanwhile, in the second game of Sunday’s double-header at Musgrave Park, back-to-back champions Wolfhounds will be aiming for a fifth consecutive bonus-point victory of the campaign when they take on Glasgow Warriors (3pm, Youtube/TG4).
In contrast to Fogarty trying to manage with what’s available, Wolfhounds counterpart Neill Alcorn has the luxury of resting four first-choice Ireland backs including captain Aoife Dalton and making eight changes from the team which started the 69-0 rout of Brython.
Like Dalton, last Sunday’s Player of the Match Stacey Flood gets the weekend off as do halfbacks Dannah O’Brien and Aoibheann Reilly plus rising star Robyn O’Connor, with last season’s skipper, Claire Boles from Fermanagh, captaining this much-changed team.
Ulster skipper India Daley drops to the bench with her provincial colleague Maebh Clenaghan getting a first start of the campaign at hooker, while former Armagh gaelic footballer Niamh Marley will wear the No 23 jersey after run-outs on both wings.
Sophie Barrett is back on Wolfhounds duty after being released last weekend to play for her club Enniskillen in their All Ireland Junior Cup final defeat by Barnhall and will begin on the bench along with fellow Ulster prop Cara McLean.
Ireland lock Fiona Tuite starts in the second row while two other adopted Ulsterwomen will look after the outhalf role – Abby Moyles from the off, with Kate Farrell-McCabe providing bench cover – in the absence of O’Brien and Flood from the matchday squad.
Young Ireland winger Katie Corrigan, who scored 12 tries in five Celtic Challenge games as an 18-year-old back in 2024, will make her first appearance of the current campaign while Olympian Amy Larn starts at fullback.
CLOVERS (v Glasgow Warriors): Aoife Corey; Emily Foley, Niamh Murphy, Lyndsay Clarke, Alana McInerney; Caitriona Finn, Emily Lane (capt); Siobhan McCarthy, Uillin Eilian, Sadhbh McGrath, Aoibheann McGrath, Faith Oviawe, Rosie Searle, Annakate Cournane, Jemima Adams-Verling. Replacements: Saoirse Crowe, Orlaith Morrissey, Ella Burns, Amelia Green, Caoimhe Murphy, Aoife Grimes; Katie Whelan, Lucia Linn.
WOLFHOUNDS (v Brython Thunder): Amy Larn; Maggie Boylan, Eve Higgins, Vicky Elmes-Kinlan, Katie Corrigan; Abby Moyles, Jade Gaffney; Caoimhe Molloy, Maebh Clenaghan, Linda Djougang, Kate Jordan, Fiona Tuite, Claire Boles (capt), Maeve Og O’Leary, Erin King. Replacements: India Daley, Cara McLean, Sophie Barrett, Naoise Smyth, Aoife Corcoran; Alex Connor, Kate Farrell-McCabe, Niamh Marley.
Action from the high-scoring Celtic Challenge clash between Clovers and Glasgow (Pic: Colin Molloy)
Young No 8 Jemima Adams-Verling (right) had another big game for Clovers (Pic: Colin Molloy)
Briar McNamara scores an early try to give Glasgow the lead against Clovers (Pic: Colin Molloy)
Sadhbh McGrath and the Clare Clovers (from left) Alana McInerney, Aoife Corey and Siobhan McCarthy (Pic: Colin Molloy)
