Ireland Sevens Squads Enjoy Positive Pre-Season Hit-Out In Elche
The Ireland Sevens squads enjoyed a positive pre-season hit-out at the annual Elche 7s tournament over the weekend, with Ireland Women – led by Lucy Mulhall – claiming the title on their return to action in Spain.
With the opening leg of the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series 2022 just over a month away, both squads gained valuable game time as they build up towards the new season, which gets underway in Dubai in late November.
Anthony Eddy‘s Ireland Women impressed over the course of the weekend, winning all six of their outings as they left Alicante with pre-season silverware and plenty of positives to build on in the weeks ahead.
After topping the Pool standings with four wins from four on Saturday, Ireland backed that form up with a 19-10 semi-final win over hosts Spain on Sunday, before defeating Poland 26-0 in the tournament final. Eve Higgins, Amee-Leigh Murphy Crowe and Beibhinn Parsons (2) all crossed for tries in the final.
Ireland Men, meanwhile, suffered a narrow 24-19 defeat to Spain in their final, having also topped the Pool standings with four wins and a draw to their name. James Toppings‘ side, who recently impressed during the World Series double-header in Canada, welcomed Olympians Terry Kennedy, Jordan Conroy and Hugo Lennox back to action in Spain.
Ganadoras del #elche7s de la 6° edición🌴@IrishRugby 🍀 pic.twitter.com/VQEytDNK6g
— Elche7s (@elche7s) October 17, 2021
Both Ireland squads will continue their preparations for the 2022 season at the IRFU High Performance Centre in the weeks ahead. The World Series kicks off with back-to-back legs in Dubai in late November/early December, before Rounds 3 and 4 are played out in Malaga and Seville in January.
Elche 7s Results:
Saturday, October 16:
- Ireland Women 26-5 Belgium
- Ireland Men 19-19 Zastava
- Ireland Women 33-7 Poland
- Ireland Men 36-7 Germany
- Ireland Women 31-0 Viator Costa Blanca
- Ireland Men 15-12 France
- Ireland Women 49-5 Spain
Sunday, October 17:
- Ireland Men 21-19 Spain
- Ireland Men 31-5 Viator Barbarians
- Ireland Women 19-10 Spain (Tournament Semi-Final)
- Ireland Men 19-24 Spain (Tournament Final)
- Ireland Women 26-0 Poland (Tournament Final).
Ireland Men’s Sevens Squad:
Jordan Conroy (Buccaneers RFC)
Niall Comerford (UCD RFC/Leinster)
Chris Cosgrave (UCD RFC/Leinster)
Sean Cribbin (Suttonians RFC)
Fergus Jemphrey (Blackheath RFC/IQ Rugby)
Sean Kearns (Ireland Sevens)
Terry Kennedy (St Mary’s College RFC)
Hugo Lennox (Skerries RFC)
Matthew McDonald (IQ Rugby)
Aaron O’Sullivan (Blackrock College RFC)
Jude Postlethwaite (Banbridge RFC/Ulster)
Zac Ward (Ballynahinch RFC)
Ireland Women’s Sevens Squad:
Claire Boles (Railway Union RFC)
Megan Burns (Blackrock College RFC)
Amee-Leigh Murphy Crowe (Railway Union RFC)
Katie Heffernan (Mullingar RFC/Railway Union RFC)
Eve Higgins (Railway Union RFC)
Brittany Hogan (DCU RFC/Old Belvedere RFC)
Erin King (Old Belvedere RFC)
Emily Lane (Blackrock College RFC)
Maeve Liston (Blackrock College RFC)
Kate Farrell McCabe (Suttonians RFC)
Grace Moore (Railway Union RFC/IQ Rugby)
Lucy Mulhall (Rathdrum RFC) (capt)
Béibhinn Parsons (Blackrock College RFC)
Aoibheann Reilly (Blackrock College RFC)
Katie Whelan (Enniscorthy RFC).