The Ireland Women (sponsored by TritonLake) began the final day of the Rugby World Cup Sevens with a 24-0 defeat to Fiji in the 5th-8th place play-offs.
A tough draw has seen Ireland come up against New Zealand, the defending World Cup champions, and Fiji, the bronze medallists from the recent World Series, in the space of little over 14 hours.
Aiden McNulty's side will look to end the tournament on a high when they play England at 5.31pm local time/4.31pm Irish time, with the winners finishing in seventh place overall.
Fiji's power advantage was evident early on as they tapped two penalties, drawing up close to the try-line before Adi Vani Buleki lunged over in the second minute despite the best efforts of Amee-Leigh Murphy Crowe.
Beibhinn Parsons knocked on a pass during a promising Lucy Mulhall-inspired attack, and Fiji took immediate advantage. They worked scrum ball infield where a dummying Reapi Ulunisau took off to romp in under the posts.
Ireland's error count increased as they turned around with a 12-point deficit to overcome, and they continued to struggle to create openings on the restart with the Fijians ultra physical in defence.
Fiji captain Raijieli Daveua stepped inside Kate Farrell McCabe to run in a converted try in the ninth minute, before Parsons retrieved a loose Eve Higgins pass to retain possession from the restart.
However, Ulunisau read Ireland's intentions at the next phase, stepping in to intercept a pass from Higgins and complete her brace with just over three-and-a-half minutes remaining.
A nice play off a scrum unleashed Murphy Crowe to bring Ireland back into Fijian territory, but the Pacific Islanders succeeded in making it a stop-start conclusion to the game as the girls in green were held scoreless.
All of Ireland’s games are live on the RTÉ Player in the Republic of Ireland, while there will be coverage across Irish Rugby social media channels and on IrishRugby.ie. A full list of broadcasters is available here.
The Ireland Men’s and Women’s Sevens teams are wearing their brand new Canterbury kit for the World Cup in Cape Town. Click here to buy the new jerseys online from Intersport Elverys.
Ireland's error count increased as they turned around with a 12-point deficit to overcome, and they continued to struggle to create openings on the restart with the Fijians ultra physical in defence.
Fiji captain Raijieli Daveua stepped inside Kate Farrell McCabe to run in a converted try in the ninth minute, before Parsons retrieved a loose Eve Higgins pass to retain possession from the restart.
However, Ulunisau read Ireland's intentions at the next phase, stepping in to intercept a pass from Higgins and complete her brace with just over three-and-a-half minutes remaining.
A nice play off a scrum unleashed Murphy Crowe to bring Ireland back into Fijian territory, but the Pacific Islanders succeeded in making it a stop-start conclusion to the game as the girls in green were held scoreless.
All of Ireland’s games are live on the RTÉ Player in the Republic of Ireland, while there will be coverage across Irish Rugby social media channels and on IrishRugby.ie. A full list of broadcasters is available here.
The Ireland Men’s and Women’s Sevens teams are wearing their brand new Canterbury kit for the World Cup in Cape Town. Click here to buy the new jerseys online from Intersport Elverys.