Squad Announced For Women’s ‘Emerging Talent’ Day

The IRFU’s High Performance Unit, under the direction of Ireland Women’s head coach Adam Griggs, are hosting a Women’s Emerging Talent Day at the National Sports Campus in Abbotstown on Saturday.

The camp is designed to introduce players identified from provincial development staff and through the Under-18 and Senior IRFU Women’s Interprovincial Championships to the high performance arena.

The players will be educated around Mobility Preparation, Recovery Strategies, Performance Nutrition and Strength & Conditioning, and will also be guided through the national programme’s key criteria for their individual positions while participating in two on-field rugby sessions.

Four of the selected players also featured in the Ireland Under-18 Women’s Sevens squad over the summer. The Ballinasloe trio of Meabh Deely, Beibhinn Parsons and Aoibheann Reilly and Carrick-on-Suir’s Maggie Boylan played their part in winning the inaugural Home Nations Sevens Series in July.

Ireland Women’s head coach Adam Griggs commented: “The aim of this Emerging Talent Day is to have a closer look at players who have been identified as having the potential to go on and play at a national level over the coming years.

“This comes on the back of a very successful time for the Women’s Performance Programme, as a result of the success of the Ireland Under-18s Sevens over the summer and on the back of the Under-18 and Senior Interprovincial Championships, which really highlights the youth coming through in both forms of the game.

“Exposing these players to the demands of the high performance side of the game earlier and having them come together at a national level will give them an insight into what it takes to compete at the elite end of our game.

“This will give them the chance to train at a higher level and test their skill-set with other talented players from around the country. Hopefully it inspires them to maximise their potential and achieve further representative honours for provincial and national teams.”

Women’s Emerging Talent Day Squad:

Judy Bobbett (Blackrock/Leinster) *
Maggie Boylan (Carrick-on-Suir/Munster) *
Lily Brady (Wesport/Connacht) *
Nicole Carroll (Suttonians/Leinster)
Aimee Clarke (Railway Union/Leinster)
Eimear Corri (Blackrock/Leinster)
Kathryn Dane (Old Belvedere/Ulster)
Meabh Deely (Ballinasloe/Connacht) *
Sarah Dent (Ballinasloe/Connacht)
Ellie Dillane (NUIG/Connacht)
Linda Djougang (Old Belvedere/Leinster)
Daisy Earle (Railway Union/Leinster)
Lauren Farrell McCabe (Suttonians/Leinster)
Aine Galvin (Ballinasloe/Connacht) *
Neve Jones (Malone/Ulster)
Maeve Liston (Ballyshannon/Ulster)
Siobhan McCarthy (Railway Union/Munster)
Sara O’Gorman (Newport/Munster) *
Beibhinn Parsons (Ballinasloe/Connacht) *
Nicole Purdom (Suttonians/Leinster)
Aoibheann Reilly (Ballinasloe/Connacht) *

*  Denotes Under-18 player