The Ireland team to face the Black Ferns in WXV.
Head Coach Scott Bemand has named his Ireland Match Day Squad, sponsored by Aon, for Sunday’s opening WXV1 clash against New Zealand at BC Place in Vancouver (Kick-off 7pm local time/3am Irish time).
Edel McMahon captains Ireland from the back row, as Bemand retains continuity in his selection from the six-try victory over Australia in Belfast earlier this month.
There is just one change in the Ireland backline as Stacey Flood comes in to start at full-back, with Eimear Considine switching to the right wing and Amee-Leigh Murphy Crowe retaining her place on the left.
Enya Breen and Aoife Dalton make up the midfield pairing, with Molly Scuffil-McCabe and Dannah O’Brien continuing their half-back partnership for Sunday’s showdown against the defending world champions in Canada.
In the pack, there is an unchanged front row as Niamh O’Dowd, Neve Jones and Linda Djougang are named to start, with Dorothy Wall joined by Fiona Tuite in the engine room.
Aoife Wafer is at blindside flanker, captain McMahon at openside and Brittany Hogan packs down at number eight.
Bemand has an exciting blend of youth and experience to call upon from the replacements bench, with Clíodhna Moloney, Siobhán McCarthy, Grace Moore and Erin King joining uncapped prop Andrea Stock as the reinforcements up front, while backs Emily Lane, Eve Higgins and Vicky Elmes Kinlan complete Ireland’s Match Day 23.
Looking ahead to Sunday, Head Coach Bemand said: “We’ve had a really good training week here in Vancouver, including a valuable hit out against France on Wednesday. We’re facing into three matches against the top teams in the world, and New Zealand first up on Sunday present physical and ball movements threats, so the training we’ve done and the intensity of the session against France has let us tune into that.
“In terms of selection, we’ve had some good competition for places in recent weeks which has led to some difficult conversations. We’re pleased with how the group are performing, and we feel we’ve got the right blend in our Match Day Squad for the opening game of the campaign.”
Sunday’s match is live on RugbyPassTV.
15. Stacey Flood (Railway Union RFC)(11)
14. Eimear Considine (UL Bohemian RFC/Munster)(27)
13. Aoife Dalton (Old Belvedere RFC/Leinster)(15)
12. Enya Breen (Blackrock College RFC/Munster)(22)
11. Amee-Leigh Murphy Crowe (Railway Union RFC/Munster)(10)
10. Dannah O’Brien (Old Belvedere RFC/Leinster)(16)
9. Molly Scuffil-McCabe (Leinster)(17)
1. Niamh O’Dowd (Old Belvedere RFC/Leinster)(8)
2. Neve Jones (Gloucester-Hartpury)(27)
3. Linda Djougang (Old Belvedere RFC/Leinster)(38)
4. Dorothy Wall (Exeter Chiefs/Munster)(29)
5. Fiona Tuite (Old Belvedere RFC/Ulster)(7)
6. Aoife Wafer (Blackrock College RFC/Leinster)(8)
7. Edel McMahon (Exeter Chiefs/Connacht)(captain)(29)
8. Brittany Hogan (Old Belvedere RFC/Ulster)(24)
Replacements:
16. Clíodhna Moloney (Exeter Chiefs)(35)
17. Siobhán McCarthy (Worcester Warriors/Munster)(1)
18. Andrea Stock (Trailfinders Women/IQ Rugby)*
19. Grace Moore (Trailfinders Women/IQ Rugby)(15)
20. Erin King (Old Belvedere RFC)(1)
21. Emily Lane (Blackrock College RFC)(7)
22. Eve Higgins (Railway Union RFC)(18)
23. Vicky Elmes Kinlan (Wicklow RFC)(1)
* denotes uncapped player
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