PwC U-18 Women’s Interprovincial Action At IRFU HPC

It is part of a series of games taking place between the four provinces in the coming weeks as benchmarking resumes for the IRFU Women’s Rugby Pathway.

There are 11 clubs represented in Fraser Gow’s Connacht Match Day 23 to face Leinster on Sunday. Out half Aifric Ni Ghibne and Aibidh Ni Mhaille are the two Corinthians players in the squad. The Galway club were one of the first to return to contact training when public health restrictions were eased on May 10^th. Aifric was interviewed in the video below.

Four players remain underage having been involved in the last U18 Women’s Championship in 2019 with Katelyn Bourke, Olivia Haverty, Mollie Star and Ivana Kiripati all returning to the set up.

Four more players from the 2019 squad will line out against Leinster in the Senior game at the Sportsground – Faith Oviawe, Megan Walsh, Hannah Coen and Emily Gavin are all named on the bench.

Faith Oviawe and Ivana Kiripati were both to the fore in Connacht’s 10-0 win at home to Munster in 2019. You can see Kiripati with the line break and scoring pass for Hannah Gullane in the opening score and Oviawe go all the way herself for the second.

Michael Bolger is the Leinster head coach and his players for this weekend come from 10 different counties and 16 different clubs.

Leinster have also retained four players from their 2019 underage squad – Victoria Elmes Kinlan, Katie Whelan, Erin King and captain Aoife Wafer.

Five of the players who line out were part of the Ireland U18 Women’s training squad in 2020 – Leinster back rowers Aoife Wafer and Erin King and their scrum half Katie Whelan, as well as Connacht duo Katelyn Bourke and Ivana Kiripati.

Sunday August 29th, 2021

Connacht U18 Women v Leinster U18 Women, IRFU High Performance Centre, 13:00

Connacht U18 Women: Clara Barrett (Ballina RFC), Molly Boote (Connemara RFC), Cliona O’Sullivan (Sligo RFC), Eabha Nic Dhonncha (Corinthians RFC), Maria Gorham (Connemara RFC), Aifric Ni Ghibne (Corinthians RFC), Olivia Haverty (Ballinasloe RFC); Joann Curley (Ballinasloe RFC), Katelyn Bourke (Ballina RFC) – Captain, Roisin Maher (Creggs RFC), Grainne Hahessy (Claremorris RFC), Mollie Starr (Portumna RFC), Ellie Clarke (Buccaneers RFC), Sarah McCormick (Ballina RFC), Ivana Kiripati (Buccaneers RFC).

Replacements: Ellen O’Toole (Westport RFC), Rosie Ganley (Claremorris RFC), Aoife Keighery (Ballinasloe RFC), Karly Tierney (Oughterard RFC), Aibidh Ni Mhaille (Corinthians RFC), Amy McWilliams (Ballina RFC), Emma Mitchell (Ballinasloe RFC), Hannah Clarke (Oughterard RFC).

Leinster U18 Women: Ciara Boland (Enniscorthy RFC), Emma Tilly (MU Barnhall RFC), Victoria Elmes Kinlan (Wicklow RFC), Aoife Dalton (Tullamore RFC), Alanna Fitzpatrick (Portarlington RFC), Dannah O’Brien (Tullow RFC), Katie Whelan (Enniscorthy RFC); Hannah Wilson (Cill Dara RFC), Sarah Delaney (Cill Dara RFC), Isobel Clerk (Mullingar RFC), Koren Dunne (Portlaoise RFC), Leah Tarpey (Tullamore RFC), Laoise Devlin (St Mary’s College RFC), Aoife Wafer (Enniscorthy RFC) CAPTAIN, Erin King (Old Belvedere RFC)

Replacements: Anna Brennock (Old Belvedere RFC), Ava Kavanagh (Arklow RFC), Meabh Keegan (Clontarf FC), Eadaoin Murtagh (Cill Dara RFC), Ruth Campbell (Naas RFC), Emma Larkin (Portlaoise RFC), Abby Moyles (Navan RFC), Eva Sterritt (Greystones RFC)

Please note, the IRFU High Performance Centre is a training facility and spectators are not permitted entry. 

Parents/Guardians attending in a safeguarding /supervisory capacity are not classified as a spectator and have been contacted directly to facilitate attendance. Any personnel not listed as a parent/guardian will not be permitted entry.