Ireland Women Knocked Out Of Cup Contention By New Zealand

New Zealand showed exactly why they are reigning Rugby World Cup Sevens champions by handing the Ireland Women a 28-0 Cup quarter-final defeat in Cape Town.

In Pics: New Zealand Push Clear In Second Half Against Ireland Women

Aiden McNulty’s side were right in the hunt at half-time, trailing by a converted try, but Portia Woodman and replacements Alena Saili and Shiray Kaka all crossed to seal Ireland’s fate.

While frustrated with their performance and tonight’s result, the Ireland Women (sponsored by TritonLake) can still finish the World Cup in their highest ever position.

Fifth place will be their aim tomorrow, with two matches still to play. They return to action against Fiji at 10.40am local time/9.40am Irish time. The winners will battle it out for fifth against either England or Canada.

With a big vocal crowd creating a brilliant atmosphere for the night session, Niall Williams got New Zealand off to a strong start by slipping out of a tackle for a try inside the opening 90 seconds.

The wet conditions made handling difficult but Stacey Flood sniped off the back of a ruck to take Ireland past the halfway line, and a subsequent penalty allowed them to attack off a scrum.

An unfortunate knock-on from Brittany Hogan saw possession handed back, but a strong ball-dislodging tackle by captain Lucy Mulhall on Williams won it back for her side as the scoreline remained 7-0.

Emily Lane also chipped in with a turnover penalty which brought a cagey first half to a close, yet a moment of individual brilliance from Woodman widened the margin to 14 points inside a minute of the restart.

The Black Ferns great’s cut back and burst of pace took her clear from inside her own 22, and Ireland were then unable to retrieve a kick through from Flood despite a committed chase.

Instead, New Zealand pushed into a 21-0 lead with little over three minutes remaining. Some slick work from Kaka, including a deft offload behind her back, released Saili for their third try, converted again by Risi Pouri-Lane.

Ireland were being made to pay for their missed tackles – 13 at that point to New Zealand’s one – and Murphy Crowe was subsequently isolated for a penalty after picking and gaining ground from a ruck.

A late breakaway try from Kaka compounded Ireland’s woes, Mulhall’s dummy and direct run had brought them into a decent position but scrappy ruck ball led to a Lane knock on which New Zealand ruthlessly punished.

All of Ireland’s games are live on the RTÉ Player in the Republic of Ireland, while there will be coverage across Irish Rugby social media channels and on IrishRugby.ie. A full list of broadcasters is available here.

The Ireland Men’s and Women’s Sevens teams are wearing their brand new Canterbury kit for the World Cup in Cape Town. Click here to buy the new jerseys online from Intersport Elverys.

IRELAND WOMEN’S SEVENS Squad (Rugby World Cup Sevens 2022, Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town, September 9-11, 2022):

Kathy Baker (Blackrock College RFC)
Megan Burns (Blackrock College RFC)
Stacey Flood (Railway Union RFC)
Katie Heffernan (Railway Union RFC)
Eve Higgins (Railway Union RFC)
Brittany Hogan (Old Belvedere RFC)
Erin King (Old Belvedere RFC)
Emily Lane (Blackrock College RFC)
Kate Farrell McCabe (Suttonians RFC)
Lucy Mulhall (Wicklow RFC) (capt)
Amee-Leigh Murphy Crowe (Railway Union RFC)
Beibhinn Parsons (Blackrock College RFC)

IRELAND WOMEN’S RWC Sevens Schedule –

Friday, September 9:

Round Of 16 –

IRELAND 24 BRAZIL 12, Cape Town Stadium
Scorers: Ireland: Tries: Amee-Leigh Murphy Crowe 2, Lucy Mulhall, Beibhinn Parsons; Cons: Lucy Mulhall 2
Brazil: Tries: Bianca Silva, Mariana Nicolau; Con: Luiza Campos
HT: Ireland 14 Brazil 12

Match Report: Murphy Crowe Crosses Twice As Ireland Women Advance To Last-Eight

Team: Beibhinn Parsons, Stacey Flood, Eve Higgins, Emily Lane, Lucy Mulhall (capt), Megan Burns, Amee-Leigh Murphy Crowe.

Subs used: Katie Heffernan, Kate Farrell McCabe, Kathy Baker, Erin King. Not used: Brittany Hogan.

Rugby World Cup Sevens – Fixtures/Results

Saturday, September 10:

Championship Quarter-Final –

NEW ZEALAND 28 IRELAND 0, Cape Town Stadium
Scorers: New Zealand: Tries: Niall Williams, Portia Woodman, Alena Saili, Shiray Kaka; Cons: Risi Pouri-Lane 3, Tenika Willison
Ireland: –
HT: New Zealand 7 Ireland 0

Team: Beibhinn Parsons, Stacey Flood, Brittany Hogan, Emily Lane, Lucy Mulhall (capt), Megan Burns, Amee-Leigh Murphy Crowe.

Subs used: Eve Higgins, Kate Farrell McCabe, Kathy Baker. Not used: Katie Heffernan, Erin King.

Sunday, September 11:

Championship 5th-8th Place Play-Off –

IRELAND v FIJI, Cape Town Stadium, 10.40am local time/9.40am Irish time