More Dream Team Recognition For In-Form Murphy Crowe

Amee-Leigh Murphy Crowe’s terrific try-scoring exploits last weekend have earned her a place on the HSBC Canada Sevens Dream Team.

It is the second successive tournament that Murphy Crowe has gained Dream Team recognition. She scored 12 tries in Langford, setting a new Irish scoring record for a single World Series event.

The Tipperary speedster was voted onto the Langford Dream Team along with Charlotte Caslick and Faith Nathan from champions Australia, New Zealand’s Portia Woodman, Michaela Blyde and Tyla Nathan-Wong, and Canadian favourite Krissy Scurfield.

Murphy Crowe took just over four minutes to score a hat-trick of tries against Japan, and followed up with another first half hat-trick in Ireland’s second pool win over Brazil.

Modest as ever, the 27-year-old winger brushed off her sparkling 2022 form, saying: “It’s that team, playing inside the team. They drive me to who I am. I wouldn’t be here without them.

“The body’s good and the mind’s good, so that’s good,” she told World Rugby. “But I wouldn’t get too bogged down in those sorts of (try-scoring) stats.

“I want to be able to put my best foot forward for the team and if that is through scoring then so be it.

“But if it’s making clever tackles or if it’s being on someone’s inside shoulder, (or) if it’s a chat off the pitch that you might need a pick-me-up, then I’m there for that. I’ll try and help to drive our team forward.”

She finished the pool stages with seven tries in all, and began day two with a last-gasp match winner in the Cup quarter-final against the USA.

Despite losing out to eventual winners Australia in the last-four, Aiden McNulty’s side regrouped for a superb 22-14 Bronze final victory over France, during which Murphy Crowe bagged all four tries.

Leading the scoring charts with 32 tries ahead of the final leg in Toulouse (May 20-22), the Ireland star is set to finish as the series’ top try scorer for the second time in three years. Caslick, on 24 tries, is her closest rival.

Murphy Crowe, who made her series debut in Guangzhou back in 2014, is now seventh on the all-time top try scorers’ list with 130 tries in 159 matches. Woodman leads the way on 201.

“We’ve got a big summer coming up with Rugby World Cup Sevens qualification, which is the ultimate goal for us, to reach the World Cup in Cape Town in September.

“We’re really excited to keep building. We’re just going to focus on getting our team cohesion right and being able to perform when we are under pressure.

“It would be absolutely amazing (to qualify). It is this year’s goal, and when you achieve a goal you feel some sort of pride and relief about how much work you’ve put in throughout the year.

“So, for everyone in our squad, it would be a huge achievement. It’d also be really exciting to see some of the girls who haven’t played in World Cups experience it.”