Ireland head coach Scott Bemand has made seven changes for Ireland’s second World Cup group game
BY RICHARD BULLICK
HEAD coach Scott Bemand has been bold, making as many as seven changes to his starting team for Sunday’s second World Cup group game given Ireland’s record of close contests with opponents Spain (12 noon, BBC2/RTE2).
A second consecutive victory in Pool C at Northampton’s Franklin’s Gardens would ensure Ireland’s qualification for the knockout stages ahead of facing world champions New Zealand in Brighton next Sunday.
Although Ireland are adamant that they aren’t looking beyond this Spanish clash, there has been considerable rotation with only three of last weekend’s starting pack retained this time and a further two changes behind the scrum.
Molly Scuffil-McCabe comes in for Aoibheann Reilly as the musical chairs continues in Bemand’s old position of scrumhalf and Anna McGann takes over on the left wing from her fellow scorer of two tries in the warm-up match against Canada, Beibhinn Parsons.
Former England international Elle Perry gets her first start in the green jersey at loosehead prop in place of Niamh O’Dowd while Claudia Moloney-McDonald, Ireland’s only survivor from the 2017 World Cup, starts at hooker instead of Ulsterwoman Neve Jones.
Likewise, there is a swap in the second row with Eimear Corri-Fallon starting in the engineroom alongside skipper Sam Monaghan and her fellow Leinster lock Ruth Campbell reverting to the bench.
Ulster’s Fiona Tuite, who normally plays second row but had a first start at blindside in the World Cup opener is the only player retained from the loose forward trio which faced Japan, with Grace Moore and Fermanagh flanker Claire Boles both drafted in.
Boles from Lisbellaw, who represented Ireland in last summer’s Olympics, gets her first taste of World Cup action as a direct replacement for last Sunday’s skipper Edel McMahon, who isn’t in the matchday squad against Spain, in the No 7 jersey.
Ealing Trailfinders forward Moore, who came off the bench against Japan, starts in the middle of the backrow with Ulsterwoman Brittany Hogan, last weekend’s Player of the Match, named on the replacements panel here.
This Sunday’s Ireland bench includes Ulster prop Sadhbh McGrath, the day after her 21st birthday, as back-up tighthead to Linda Djougang, who becomes the first Irishwoman since Donegal native Nora Stapleton eight years ago to reach the milestone of 50 caps.
Aoife Dalton (left) and Cliodhna Moloney-McDonald were the two Ireland players on media duty on Saturday (©INPHO/Laszlo Geczo)
Exeter Chiefs flanker Nancy McGillivray, who has Irish and Thai parents, is set to win her second cap having switched allegiance from England at the start of July, having been named as one of three bench backs along with Cork duo Enya Breen and Emily Lane.
Along with winger Amee-Leigh Costigan and Jones, Breen has skippered Ireland in the past year while Hogan has been a designated vice-captain so there should be plenty of leaders on the field at the back end of this game.
All of that said, by changing nearly half his starting line-up for such an important match, Bemand has shown real faith in Ireland’s squad depth and been braver than some of his Ireland men’s team counterparts in the past.
There has been a reluctance to shake things up too much in men’s World Cup matches, even against genuine minnows in five-team groups, whereas Spain’s record against Ireland suggests they are very credible opponents.
In the most recent meeting, in October 2023, Ireland had to come from 10 points down against Spain in Dubai to claim the inaugural WXV3 title with a 15-13 victory, with Jones scoring the winning try from a maul in the final few minutes.
Just over two years earlier, a disastrous 8-7 defeat at the hands of the Spanish in Parma had been a significant factor in Ireland failing to qualify for the last World Cup albeit it was a subsequent loss to Scotland which sealed their fate.
Five of the last nine fixtures between these nations have had a winning margin of three points or fewer and Spain previously enjoyed several convincing victories over Ireland while competing in the women’s Six Nations between 2000 and 2006.
Spain being axed from the Six Nations thereafter in favour of Italy reflected a desire to align with the men’s competition rather than them not being good enough, but finding themselves outside that tent through no fault of their own has proved challenging.
Last time Ireland played Spain they clinched the WXV3 title, this time a World Cup knockout place is at stake (Photo by Christopher Pike – World Rugby/World Rugby via Getty Images)
Coming into this World Cup, Spain were ranked 13th, eight places behind Ireland and two below Japan who Bemand’s side defeated 42-14 in their opening game, but their national team were given six-month professional contracts to help prepare for this tournament.
They earned respect in last weekend’s 54-8 defeat to defending champions New Zealand, when Spain gave away only two penalties, and know that an upset here would keep them in the hunt for a place in the quarter-finals.
There is a strong sevens flavour to their team, so we can expect flair, but several of this Spanish side – who followed Ireland by winning the WXV3 title a year later – ply their trade in the English Premiership and so possess valuable big game experience.
Bemand was adamant during the week that Ireland don’t have one eye on the New Zealand game seven days hence and that message was echoed by the two players put up for media duty after Saturday’s captain’s run, centre Aoife Dalton and Moloney-McDonald.
Current Ireland Player of the Year Dalton did emphasise however how much this side has grown since their last meeting with Spain two autumns ago while Moloney-McDonald dismissed that disastrous 2021 defeat in Parma as having much relevance now.
“We’ve grown so much since that game against Spain, it feels like a lifetime ago and hard to believe it’s less than two years,” insists Dalton, who was also alongside Eve Higgins in the centre at that tournament though the pair have swapped jerseys since.
“I suppose we just want to keep building as a group. When we were in Dubai two years ago, our end goal was always to qualify for this World Cup, but it was also to put in big performances against big teams and to try get people along with us.
“I’m a very different player. I was just 20 back then, and I probably didn’t even understand it half as much as I do now,” reflects Dalton, who made her 10th consecutive start for Ireland that day having made a try-scoring debut against Japan as a teenager the previous summer.
“We’ve all grown as a group, and because of that we’ve all grown individually. I’ve got to work with really good coaches over the last few years including a few different defence coaches and Denis Fogarty does our breakdown stuff.
“My role within the squad is really clear now and I know what everyone wants from me. If I can deliver that, I know I’m doing my part for the team,” says Dalton, who brought up her quarter-century of caps last time out in the Japan game.
Ireland centre Aoife Dalton battles forward during Ireland’s victory against Japan in Northampton in their opening game
Part of the team which famously upset New Zealand in Vancouver last September, Dalton insists Ireland aren’t looking ahead to next weekend’s rematch with the Black Ferns or obsessing about possible permutations, but just focusing on performing game by game.
“Last week we didn’t even think of Spain or New Zealand, it was just all Japan and also for the two weeks before we came over here. We just came into the competition taking it game by game. Each game, we go out and we want to win.
“We’re not afraid to say that, but we haven’t really spoken too much about qualifying or anything like that. We just want to go out and do our best. Whatever happens this weekend, our mindset won’t change for the following week against New Zealand.
“Obviously if we do win, we qualify, but we haven’t thought about that yet as such, just on performing against Spain. We know that, if we go out and get a fast start and put our game out there, that we’ll be hard to live with.
“I was delighted with how quick we started last week. That’s what we went after (as a fix from the warm-up matches). I probably sound like a broken record, but that’s a non-negotiable for us.
“We just expect it of ourselves now. If you watch any of the top teams, they tend to get a score on the board within minutes, and we want to be up there with them,” said Dalton, whose Irish side scored two early tries against Japan and had the bonus point by half-time.
“We’ve changed a lot and developed a lot since playing Spain previously, but they’ve evolved too. They were unlucky against Japan in the World Cup warm-ups and held New Zealand to 21-0 at half-time, so they come with their challenges.
“Our girls know a lot of their backs from the sevens circuit, and I think they’re all quite lively players. They love ball-in-play, fast tempo rugby, so we just have to stick to our plan of trying to get our game out there and not let them get on top,” she declared.
Captain Monaghan has said that Ireland won’t be motivated by the thought of a revenge victory after that painful loss in Parma four years ago, with the opportunity to keep growing and progress in this tournament being incentive enough for Bemand’s ambitious team.
For her part, experienced campaigner Moloney insisted that the talk about the 2021 defeat had been mainly media-driven, making the reasonable point that this playing group is quite different with a lot of fresh faces while so much else has changed in the meantime.
By the same token, her previous World Cup campaign, on home soil in 2017, feels like a very long time ago with so much growth in women’s rugby over the intervening eight years and this tournament being very different in terms of profile and attendances.
“That was special as a home World Cup in Ireland, but this one is as geographically close as it could be, and with the numbers growing, it’s a very exciting experience to be part of,” enthused the 32-year-old Exeter Chiefs hooker.
“We’ve a bigger squad now, and more support staff, so our preparations are very professional. We’ve prepared well for Spain, who are very fit and fast, and have a lot of sevens experience in their outside backs.
“They play a little bit off the cuff and pose some jackal threats on the edge. Different threat to Japan, but we’re hoping to build on a few things from last week as well. Nailing our defence in the first couple of phases will be key, and then managing the breakdowns.
“They’ve had a tough couple of weeks, playing England in a warm-up game and then New Zealand in the first match of the tournament. I thought they played really well in the first half and showed a lot of what they can do if given time and space on the ball.”
Gloucester Hartpury lock Sam Monaghan (right) will captain Ireland in their World Cup match against Spain
Ireland may not get much credit for winning from the casual watcher who doesn’t know Spain’s rich heritage in women’s rugby but those recent clashes show they are opponents who can’t be underestimated.
Including those absent through injury, Ireland will be missing around half a team of frontliners when this game gets underway but those coming in are hungry to show their worth and give Bemand a few positive selection headaches for that glamour game against New Zealand.
Like last week against Japan, there will be spells where the opposition will have a purple patch but if Ireland can make another fast start, weather those storms and then finish well with some formidable replacements coming on, it should be another positive outcome.
The players are relishing the prospect of a return to the atmospheric Franklin’s Gardens where they were backed by a sea of green against Japan and the crowd will hope to see Ireland secure their place in the quarter-finals with another bonus-point victory.
A 20-year-old Aoife Dalton runs at the Spanish defence last time these teams met in Dubai two years ago
Ireland will hope to use skipper Sam Monaghan’s dynamic ball-carrying as a weapon against Spain again
Ireland’s defensive leader Aoife Dalton will have to be on the lookout for Spain’s attacking threats on Sunday (©INPHO/Ben Brady)
