Losing 36 to 5 against Ireland, Wales endured a tough match in the Six Nations championship. Previously, Ireland had found themselves in a slump, which Wales and others had taken advantage of. But this match was a considerable turnaround for Ireland, who played exceptionally, celebrating five impressive tries, much to the home crowd’s delight.
In contrast to their previous games in Cork, where they had scored merely three points whilst conceding 101, the Irish team had bounced back from their performance shortfalls. Their transformation was evident in their aggressive, focused, and ongoing play, suggesting no remnants of their previous discord evident in the last season’s Six Nation matches.
The game was all but decided at the half-time juncture, quite a shift from last year’s encounter where they had lost by 26 points. Before the break, Ireland had achieved three brilliantly structured tries, demonstrating significant improvements from their previous performance marked with mistakes against their match with Italy.
A crucial contributor to the game was none other than the stellar Aoife Wafer, who kickstarted the scoring spree with a tactical try after a 14-minute mark following a patient build-up. Soon thereafter, Ireland benefited from a Welsh lineout in their half, thanks to Edel McMahon’s skilful interception. A midfield breakthrough from Aoibhean Reilly escalated the offence and brought Ireland close to another try which was clinched by Eve Higgins.
Ireland continued to put Wales on the back foot, primarily attacking their set-piece, exploiting the lineout in particular. Despite holding the winds to their advantage in the initial half, Wales struggled to breach the Irish defensive line, managing a single attempt before either team could add to their scoreline. Ireland, however, kept them at bay with their formidable defence.
Wales struggled in their clash against Ireland, trailing by more than 30 points before they exhibited any form of significant threat an hour into the match. The play involving substitute lock, Gwennan Hopkins, being deemed to have crossed the try line was initially ruled against by referee Sara Cox, however, the third match official overturned this ruling.
The defence of the Welsh team was far less formidable, and a powerful break in the midfield gave rise to another try for the Irish team. When a tackle occurred within Wales’s half, Wafer was not detained and resumed her charge. Ireland, sensing weakness, capitalised as O’Brien kicked the penalty into the corner following another infringement within the Welsh 22. A lineout maul slowly ensued which predictably ended in Neve Jones touching down.
At the midway point, Ireland were leading 21-0 and any faint hopes of a Welsh rally were snuffed out in the early stages of the second half. Kate Corrigan of Ireland blocked an attempted clearance by Lleucu George, collecting the deflected ball to score near the goalposts. Excellent kicking performance from O’Brien, both in-play and at the tee, resulted in a conversion.
A standout moment occurred an hour into the game – the fifth Irish try. Ireland exploited the narrow side, held in the Welsh half until Wafer initiated another decisive break and passed to Beibhinn Parsons. With minimal space along the sideline, Parsons outpaced the defence with an impressive turn of speed.
Ireland’s squad included: L Delaney from Sale, Leinster’s K Corrigan & E Higgins, Munster’s E Breen, Connacht’s B Parsons, Leinster’s D O’Brien and A Reilly from Connacht. Further key players were Leinster’s L Djougang & C Haney, Gloucester-Hartpury’s N Jones, Munster’s D Wall, Gloucester-Hartpury’s S Monaghan, Leinster’s A Wafer, Exeter Chiefs’ E McMahon and B Hogan from Ulster.
Substitutions: F Tuite from Ulster came on for Monaghan at 49 minutes, C Moloney from Exeter Chiefs replaced Jones at 51 minutes. M Scuffil McCabe and A Dalton from Leinster were brought on for Reilly and Breen, respectively, at 55 minutes. Set at 58 minutes, S Ikahihifo from Ealing Trailfinders replaced Hogan. S McGrath of Ulster along with N O’Dowd of Leinster replaced Djougang and Haney, respectively, at 63 minutes. N Fowley from Connacht was brought in for McMahon at the 66-minute mark.
The Wales team: J Henketh, J Joyce, H Jones, K Lake, C Cox, L George, K Bevan, G Pyrs, C Philips, S Tuipulotu, A Fleming, G Evans, A Butchers, A Callender, and B Lewis.
Substitutions for Wales: N John came on for Butchers at 28 minutes and C Keight replaced Lake at 35 minutes. Substitutions continued with S Jones replacing Bevan at 51 minutes, M Reardon for Philips at 52 minutes, and D Rose for Tuipulotu while A Constable swapped places with Prys, both at 57 minutes. G Hopkins came on for Fleming and K Powell for George, both at 60 minutes.
Match Official: Sara Cox of RFU.