The Ireland matchday squad are pictured at Twickenham Stadium ahead of their fourth round showdown with reigning Six Nations champions England ©INPHO/Ben Brady
The Ireland Women (sponsored by Aon) will play at Twickenham Stadium for the first time since 2018, as the penultimate round of the Guinness Women’s Six Nations sees them take on England, the defending champions and current leaders.
Saturday, April 20 –
ENGLAND WOMEN (1st) v IRELAND WOMEN (3rd), Twickenham Stadium, 2.15pm (live Virgin Media One/BBC Two/BBC iPlayer/RTÉ Radio 1)
Team News: Ireland head coach Scott Bemand has made two changes to the team that came out on top against Wales last weekend in Cork, winning 36-5 with five tries scored.
Hannah O’Connor makes her second start of the 2024 Championship, coming into the second row for the sidelined Sam Monaghan. Aoife Dalton’s return to the side also sees her centre partnership with Eve Higgins from the France game restored.
Linda Djougang and Aoife Wafer, last week’s try-scoring player-of-the-match, have recovered from knocks to feature again up front. Neve Jones, Christy Haney, Dorothy Wall, captain Edel McMahon, and Brittany Hogan complete the starting pack.
The young half-back pairing of Dannah O’Brien (20) and Aoibheann Reilly (23) is retained, with out-half O’Brien the tournament’s third top points scorer so far with 19 points.
Katie Corrigan and Béibhinn Parsons, two of the try scorers during the bonus point victory over Wales, join Lauren Delany to make up the back-three. Parsons’ fellow Ballinasloe native, Méabh Deely, has been added to the bench.
The newly-capped Shannon Ikahihifo, Clíodhna Moloney, who played against England at Twickenham in 2015 and 2016, Niamh O’Dowd, Sadhbh McGrath, and Fiona Tuite are the replacement forwards. Molly Scuffil-McCabe and Enya Breen are the other back-line options.
Speaking ahead of the game at England Rugby HQ, Bemand said: “We get another chance to perform as a group, in a great stadium with a big crowd. We are building some momentum in training and games. This is the kind of test we want, against the best out there.
“We want these occasions to be the norm, and our players are excited by the opportunity in front of them. Judging by training intent and competition for selection, the players are ready.
“Hopefully we’ll see a wave of green around the stadium that will continue to get behind our group, each and every opportunity they have.”
Meanwhile, England head coach John Mitchell has made two personnel changes to his starting XV, including restoring captain Marlie Packer to the back row. Gloucester-Hartpury’s Zoe Aldcroft reverts to the second row.
Lark Atkins-Davies returns from concussion to start at hooker, replacing the suspended Amy Cokayne. The back-line remains the same for the third match in a row, while centurion Emily Scarratt is set for a cameo off the bench.
Seventeen of the matchday 23 were involved in last year’s Grand Slam-deciding Twickenham clash with France. Upwards of 50,000 supporters are set to attend today’s encounter with Ireland.
New Zealander Mitchell commented: “We are excited for the opportunity of another crack at Twickenham in front of our awesome fans. We want to continue to get better in our game and make the most of the experience to benefit us in the future.”
Guinness Women’s Six Nations Results/Fixtures
Guinness Women’s Six Nations Table
ENGLAND WOMEN: Ellie Kildunne (Harlequins); Abby Dow (Trailfinders Women), Megan Jones (Leicester Tigers), Tatyana Heard (Gloucester-Hartpury), Jess Breach (Saracens); Holly Aitchison (Bristol Bears), Natasha Hunt (Gloucester-Hartpury); Hannah Botterman (Bristol Bears), Lark Atkin-Davies (Bristol Bears), Maud Muir (Gloucester-Hartpury), Zoe Aldcroft (Gloucester-Hartpury), Rosie Galligan (Saracens), Sadia Kabeya (Loughborough Lightning), Marlie Packer (Saracens) (capt), Alex Matthews (Gloucester-Hartpury).
Replacements: Connie Powell (Harlequins), Mackenzie Carson (Gloucester-Hartpury), Kelsey Clifford (Saracens), Morwenna Talling (Sale Sharks), Maddie Feaunati (Exeter Chiefs), Lucy Packer (Harlequins), Emily Scarratt (Loughborough Lightning), Sydney Gregson (Saracens).
IRELAND WOMEN: Lauren Delany (Sale Sharks/IQ Rugby); Katie Corrigan (Old Belvedere/Leinster), Eve Higgins (Railway Union/Leinster), Aoife Dalton (Old Belvedere/Leinster), Béibhinn Parsons (Blackrock College/Connacht); Dannah O’Brien (Old Belvedere/Leinster), Aoibheann Reilly (Blackrock College/Connacht); Linda Djougang (Old Belvedere/Leinster), Neve Jones (Gloucester-Hartpury), Christy Haney Blackrock College/Leinster), Dorothy Wall (Blackrock College/Munster), Hannah O’Connor (Blackrock College/Leinster), Aoife Wafer (Blackrock College/Leinster), Edel McMahon (Exeter Chiefs) (capt), Brittany Hogan (Old Belvedere/Ulster).
Replacements: Clíodhna Moloney (Exeter Chiefs), Niamh O’Dowd (Old Belvedere/Leinster), Sadhbh McGrath (Cooke/Ulster), Fiona Tuite (Old Belvedere/Ulster), Shannon Ikahihifo (Trailfinders Women/IQ Rugby), Molly Scuffil-McCabe (Leinster), Enya Breen (Blackrock College/Munster), Méabh Deely (Blackrock College/Connacht).
Referee: Aurélie Groizeleau (France)
Assistant Referees: Doriane Domenjo (France), Adele Robert (Belgium)
Television Match Official: Rachel Horton (Australia)
The game is live on Virgin Media One in the Republic of Ireland, while viewers in Northern Ireland/the UK can watch it live on BBC Two and the BBC iPlayer.
Pre-Match Quotes – Edel McMahon (Ireland Women): “There’s definitely been a bit more confidence heading to England, but I think the mood in general has been good week-on-week. I think heading onto England, people are excited to have a crack at them.
“I think we’re looking back at how we prepped for the France week and that volume of crowd. We’ve raised the volume at training, particularly for those lineouts and set-piece where communication will be key.
“We’ve had conversations about key strengths or weaknesses that we can spot in individuals in that team and going after them. In fairness, a lot of the girls are very aware from watching Premiership games.
“There’s again an element of familiarity, similar to the Welsh game, that we can go after. People are relishing this challenge.”
Marlie Packer (England Women): “From last year to this year, we’ve got a very different outlook as a squad. We’ve still got that winning mentality, but the way we play is different.
“We are not thinking about the occasion of a year ago, we are thinking about the occasion on Saturday. We want to make sure we enjoy the occasion.
“There are a lot of things that can take us away from the occasion, but we want to make sure that we hone in on what we want to do and put our game-plan out on that pitch.”
Opta Facts – England Women v Ireland Women:
-England have won 19 of their previous 21 matches against Ireland in the Guinness Women’s Six Nations (L2), including all 11 of their encounters on English soil. The Red Roses have held Ireland scoreless in each of their three meetings in the Championship
– England have won each of their last 27 Women’s Six Nations matches, the longest ever winning run by any side in the history of the Men’s or Women’s Championships
– Ireland won their most recent Six Nations match (36-5 v Wales) after losing seven in a row previously. Their 31-point margin of victory was their largest in the Championship since 2021
– Ellie Kildunne has already scored six tries in this year’s Six Nations, three times as many as any other player having scored a brace in each of England’s three games so far
– Ireland’s Neve Jones has been successful with each of her 43 tackle attempts in this year’s tournament. No other player has attempted more than 20 tackles without missing one. Her team-mate, Linda Djougang, has made twice as many dominant tackles as any other player (14)
Recent Meetings –
2020: Women’s Six Nations: England Women 27 Ireland Women 0, Castle Park, Doncaster
2022: TikTok Women’s Six Nations: England Women 69 Ireland Women 0, Mattioli Woods Welford Road, Leicester
2023: TikTok Women’s Six Nations: Ireland Women 0 England Women 48, Virgin Media Park
Support Ireland on www.facebook.com/irishrugby or search #ENGvIRE, #IrishRugby and #GuinnessW6N on www.twitter.com/irishrugby.
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