Vodafone Women’s Interprovincial Final: Munster v Leinster Preview

VODAFONE WOMEN’S INTERPROVINCIAL CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL:

Saturday, August 31 –

MUNSTER (1st) v LEINSTER (2nd), Kingspan Stadium, kick-off 4.15pm (live on TG4/BBC iPlayer/BBC Sport website)

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2024/25 Interprovincial Championship Top Scorers: Munster – Points: Alana McInerney 30; Tries: Alana McInerney 6; Leinster – Points: Nikki Caughey 12; Tries: Aoife Dalton, Leah Tarpey, Emma Tilly, Katie Whelan 2 each
Recent Interprovincial Form: Munster: LLWWW; Leinster: WWWLW

Last Five Meetings: 2021: Leinster 7 Munster 19, Energia Park; 2023: Munster 26 Leinster 17, Virgin Media Park; Leinster 26 Munster 19, Energia Park; Final: Munster 14 Leinster 33, Virgin Media Park; 2024: Munster 32 Leinster 21, Virgin Media Park

Players To Watch Out For: Munster: Jane Clohessy – Having only made her senior debut for Munster last August, Clohessy has quickly become an important forward for the province, and a regular starter. A powerful ball carrier, with an abrasive presence around the pitch, she will want to finish the competition with her best performance yet, just days after being called up as an Ireland training panellist.

Leinster: Jade Gaffney – It is the highest compliment to Gaffney that Leinster have not missed injured scrum half Katie Whelan as much as they could have. This is only the speedy 20-year-old’s third senior appearance for the Blues, and her second successive start. A tidy operator in all aspects of the game, she certainly has a bright future ahead of her.

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Pre-Match Views: Kate Flannery (Munster out-half) – “We’re all so excited. It’s such a good opportunity to go out and play Leinster again and just have the opportunity to win the Interpros. We’ve been happy with our performances so far.

“Obviously there’s been work-ons, and even in the Leinster game, obviously delighted with the win but there were still small tweaks that we can make from that performance.

“We’re just so excited to see what we can do. We’ve gone three from three, but after some of the games we haven’t been particularly happy with our performances. It’s nice to see the standard that we’re setting for ourselves.

“We know the potential that we can reach. It’s definitely such a close group. Everyone’s that come in, the new girls, they’ve just gelled so well. I think that really shows on the pitch when we have each other’s back, and when we’re under pressure we stick together.”

Aoife Wafer (Leinster back rower) – “We want to build on what we did last year, and that was win the Interpros, and what better’s than winning one Interpros is winning two of them. To be in a final is where we want to be.

“We’ve had some really big positives from the last few weekends, just a lot to build on for this week. I wasn’t involved in the recent game (in Cork), but it still hurts to lose to Munster because it’s a squad effort at the end of the day.

“We’ve a lot of learnings that we’ve taken from that. We know that they’re going to show up and they’re going to bring their best game, but we also know what it takes to beat a Munster side. We did it twice last year, and we just have to bring our ‘A’ game too.

“The WXV is also coming up, and it’s always a bit of bragging rights when you’re coming into (Ireland) camp, seeing which province wins! We definitely want the Leinster hands on that trophy.”

Team News: Skibbereen native Enya Breen is back in Munster’s midfield after missing last Saturday’s 29-24 triumph away to Connacht. She brings 21 international caps’ worth of experience into the fold again, with Stephanie Nunan reverting to the outside centre role.

Gloucester-Hartpury’s Siobhán McCarthy continues at loosehead prop, having earned a call-up to Scott Bemand’s Ireland squad. Tipperary youngster Beth Buttimer has caught the eye alongside her, with her set-piece work and two tries so far.

Munster’s starting pack has been virtually unchanged throughout the Championship, with Dorothy Wall’s return in the second round the only significant switch. This will be her final appearance for the province following her move to Exeter Chiefs.

No doubt on a high after being selected in the Ireland squad, Alana McInerney and Chisom Ugwueru fill the wing berths once more for the Reds. Between them, they ran in nine tries across the Interpros’ round robin phase.

Young half-backs Kate Flannery and Muirne Wall continue to lead a potent Munster back-line, while teenage front rower Aoibheann McGrath, who has Ireland Under-18 experience under her belt, is listed among the replacements and is in line for her senior debut.

Hoping her charges can regain the trophy they last lifted in January 2023, Munster head coach Fiona Hayes said: “I think that win (over Leinster in Cork) gave a slight bit of confidence to the squad. We have that going forward.

“We know this Leinster team are absolutely brilliant. They have such athletes, such ball players, and they’ve added a couple of girls into their squad now – we see Aoife Wafer and Niamh O’Dowd coming in last week, and they are class players.

“I suppose last year going into that final game, we didn’t have that win under our belt, and I think with young players, for them to have that belief and see that they are capable of going toe-to-toe with these girls, some of whom they look up to, and beating them…

“I think that win down in Musgrave is definitely something which will give us confidence, but going into every game, it’s completely different. Travelling up to Belfast, we know the Leinster that we’re going to see, it’s going to be some battle but we’re looking forward to it.”

Meanwhile, Arklow RFC product Jane Neill (pictured above) will step up for her first senior start for Leinster, just seven weeks after leading the Ireland U-20 Women to their first ever win at the age-grade, a 30-point success against Scotland at the Six Nations Women’s Summer Series.

Captain Hannah O’Connor’s ill-timed injury has opened the door for the 20-year-old Neill, who join forces in the loose forwards with Gorey native Caoimhe Molloy and stand-in skipper Boyne, who captained the Wolfhounds to Celtic Challenge glory at Kingspan Stadium last February.

Teenage full-back Robyn O’Connor is rewarded for her try-scoring exploits during last week’s 39-14 defeat of Ulster, starting again in the back-three alongside Emma Tilly and Ella Roberts.

Former Ulster out-half Nikki Caughey will direct operations from half-back alongside Navan youngster Jade Gaffney, who continues at scrum half with Ireland call-up Katie Whelan still sidelined.

Four members of Leinster’s settled tight five will link up with the national side on Monday, as the squad assembles at the IRFU High Performance Centre, with uncapped lock Ruth Campbell amongst them.

The fit-again Wafer, who had a fine cameo off the bench in round three, is held in reserve again, and there could be a seasonal debut for Ireland out-half Dannah O’Brien, the scorer of that match-winning penalty against Scotland in Belfast back in April.

MUNSTER: Aoife Corey (UL Bohemian RFC); Chisom Ugwueru (UL Bohemian RFC), Stephanie Nunan (UL Bohemian RFC), Enya Breen (Blackrock College RFC), Alana McInerney (UL Bohemian RFC); Kate Flannery (UL Bohemian RFC), Muirne Wall (UL Bohemian RFC); Siobhan McCarthy (Gloucester-Hartpury), Beth Buttimer (UL Bohemian RFC), Éilis Cahill (UL Bohemian RFC), Dorothy Wall (Exeter Chiefs), Claire Bennett (UL Bohemian RFC), Clodagh O’Halloran (UL Bohemian RFC), Jane Clohessy (UL Bohemian RFC), Chloe Pearse (UL Bohemian RFC) (capt).

Replacements: Aoibheann McGrath (Dungarvan RFC), Ciara O’Dwyer (UL Bohemian RFC), Ciara McLoughlin (UL Bohemian RFC), Aoibhe O’Flynn (UL Bohemian RFC), Brianna Heylmann (UL Bohemian RFC), Caitriona Finn (UL Bohemian RFC), Lucia Linn (Loughborough Lightning), Eimear Considine (UL Bohemian RFC).

LEINSTER: Robyn O’Connor (Wexford Wanderers RFC); Emma Tilly (MU Barnhall RFC/Old Belvedere RFC), Aoife Dalton (Tullamore RFC/Old Belvedere RFC), Leah Tarpey (Tullamore RFC/Railway Union RFC), Ella Roberts (Wicklow RFC); Nikki Caughey (Malone RFC/Railway Union RFC), Jade Gaffney (Navan RFC/Old Belvedere RFC); Linda Djougang (Wanderers FC/Old Belvedere RFC), Sarah Delaney (PortDara Falcons RFC/Blackrock College RFC), Christy Haney (Blackrock College RFC), Ruth Campbell (Naas RFC/MU Barnhall RFC/Old Belvedere RFC), Eimear Corri (Portlaoise RFC/Blackrock College RFC), Jane Neill (Arklow RFC/Galwegians RFC), Molly Boyne (Railway Union RFC) (capt), Caoimhe Molloy (Gorey RFC/Wicklow RFC).

Replacements: Aoife Moore (Carrick-on-Suir RFC/Blackrock College RFC), Kelly Burke (Mullingar RFC), Niamh O’Dowd (Old Belvedere RFC), Aoife Wafer (Enniscorthy RFC/Gorey RFC/Blackrock RFC), Dannah O’Brien (Tullow RFC/Old Belvedere RFC), Ailsa Hughes (Tullamore RFC/Railway Union RFC), Jemma Farrell (Old Belvedere RFC), Anna Doyle (Tullow RFC/Blackrock College RFC).

Referee: Keane Davison (IRFU)
Assistant Referees: Christopher Lough, Andrew Mitchell (both IRFU)
Television Match Official: Mark Patton (IRFU)