ULSTER back rower, Brittany Hogan, prop Sadhbh McGrath, and lock Fiona Tuite have been included in Head Coach Scott Bemand’s Ireland Match Day Squad, sponsored by Aon, for Saturday’s opening Guinness Women’s Six Nations clash against France, in Stade Marie-Marvingt (Kick-off 2.15pm, live on RTÉ).
Edel McMahon will captain the side from the back row, as co-captain Sam Monaghan is continuing her return to play protocols, with one uncapped player named in the Match Day squad.
18-year-old Leinster winger Katie Corrigan is selected on the wing for her first cap having impressed Bemand and the Ireland coaching team during the recent Celtic Challenge competition.
Corrigan is joined in the back three by Lauren Delany at fullback with Beibhinn Parsons on the other wing.
Nicole Fowley starts at out half, marking her return to the Championship for the first time since 2019. Fowley made her international comeback in October for the WXV3 series in Dubai against Kazakhstan.
Aoife Dalton and Eve Higgins make up the centre pairing.
Molly Scuffil-McCabe, Dannah O’Brien and Méabh Deely provide the backline reinforcements on the bench.
Up front, Linda Djougang, Neve Jones and Christy Haney make up the front row, with Dorothy Wall and Hannah O’Connor in the second row.
McMahon, is joined in the backrow by Aoife Wafer and Brittany Hogan.
Sarah Delaney, Niamh O’Dowd, Sadhbh McGrath, Fiona Tuite and Grace Moore give Bemand strong options from the bench.
Commenting on the selection, the Ireland Head Coach said: “We are all very excited to get our Guinness Women’s Six Nations campaign underway and we come into this weekend ready to put a confident performance out there. We have had a good block of preparation with players returning and we are ready to compete. I’m looking forward to seeing all the hard work come together on Saturday and what a place to kick start our Six Nations, in Stade Marie-Marvingt.”
Saturday’s match is live on RTÉ and there will be live match content on the Irish Rugby social media pages.
Ireland Team (v France, Saturday 23 March, Stade Marie-Marvingt, kick off 2.15pm)
15. Lauren Delany (Sale Sharks/IQ Rugby)
14. Katie Corrigan (Old Belvedere/Leinster)*
13. Eve Higgins (Railway Union/Leinster)
12. Aoife Dalton (Old Belvedere/Leinster)
11. Béibhinn Parsons (Blackrock College/Connacht)
10. Nicole Fowley (Galwegians/Connacht)
9. Aoibheann Reilly (Blackrock College/Connacht)
1. Linda Djougang (Old Belvedere/Leinster)
2. Neve Jones (Gloucester-Hartpury)
3. Christy Haney Blackrock College/Leinster)
4. Dorothy Wall (Blackrock College/Munster)
5. Hannah O’Connor (Blackrock College/Leinster)
6. Aoife Wafer (Blackrock College/Leinster)
7. Edel McMahon (Exeter Chiefs) Captain
8. Brittany Hogan (Old Belvedere /Ulster)
Replacements:
16. Sarah Delaney (Blackrock College/Leinster)
17. Niamh O’Dowd (Old Belvedere/Leinster)
18. Sadhbh McGrath (Cooke/Ulster)
19. Fiona Tuite (Old Belvedere/Ulster)
20. Grace Moore (Saracens/IQ Rugby)
21. Molly Scuffil-McCabe (Leinster)
22. Dannah O’Brien (Old Belvedere/Leinster)
23. Méabh Deely (Blackrock College/Connacht)
*Denotes uncapped player
