McMahon: We’re Driving Defence On In Search Of Further Improvements

Scaysbrook, the former Bath and Exeter Chiefs flanker, has replaced Hugh Hogan in the role, having had coaching spells in Hong Kong and Japan, and coached defence with both the England Under-20 and Coventry senior Men’s teams.

It is a key area of the game for Ireland and the foundation on which they have built some of their best performances. They conceded the joint-least amount of tries in WXV1 last year – eight in three matches – and brought that form into the recent Guinness Women’s Six Nations.

They produced their best defensive display in a full Six Nations campaign since 2018, conceding 18 tries in all, just three more than runners-up France. That total is considerably lower than the last two Championships – 31 in 2023, and 26 in 2024.

Keen to keep those statistics trending in the right direction, Ireland co-captain Edel McMahon spoke about the coaching change and Scaysbrook’s initial work with the squad as they prepare for the Rugby World Cup in England.

“Obviously we have a lot of respect for Hugh and wish him well. As a squad, we really valued the input he gave to us,” she told the RTÉ Rugby Podcast.

“With James coming in, it’s trying to get that continuity, so we had a very good sit-down with him (at the start) to talk about what his principles are.

“And what he’s looking to bring in, to bring his stamp in on the squad, but also keep some principles the same, and where he thinks he can develop and push our defence even further.

“He has actually taken that on really well. He’s got a couple of cool ideas that I think the squad are looking forward to doing.”

Scott Bemand’s side have just finished their first three-week block of pre-season training at the IRFU High Performance Centre. Making the World Cup squad is all that is on the players’ minds, with the Pool C opener against Japan in Northampton now just two months away.

Before that, the girls in green will host Scotland and Canada in two Summer Series games in early August. It will their first opportunities to put into practice what they have worked on with Scaysbrook.

McMahon’s back row colleague, Brittany Hogan, has enjoyed what the ex-England Saxons international has brought to the group so far. Hogan was one of Ireland’s leading tacklers during the Six Nations.

“It’s a really exciting role for him to come into,” the Killinchy woman commented. “Defence is obviously a foundation of our Irish team. We’re known for being a tough team and a tough outfit to break down.

“He has a good challenge on his hands, especially with the amount of questions that we give him! But no, it’s very exciting, and he’s bringing some fresh, fun ideas.

“I’m really looking forward to seeing how it goes and in our internal games, our warm-up games coming up.”

Having played across the back row during his playing career, and developed a reputation as a breakdown specialist, it is no surprise to hear that Scaysbrook has been looking at sharpening up Ireland’s ability to poach possession and disrupt opposition attacks.

While the injured Erin King is a big loss in terms of her jackal threat, the likes of Aoife Wafer, Aoife Dalton, Eve Higgins, Linda Djougang, and Niamh O’Dowd were all credited with breakdown steals during this year’s Six Nations.

Bringing forward the best of what they built as a defensive unit this past season, McMahon believes Ireland can continue to thrive with the synergy between the players and coaching staff a real strength of Bemand’s set-up.

“James actually shares a very similar passion to the way that we have been playing as a squad,” she explained. “He’s done a lot of work already over the breakdown with the back rows and centres. I’m really looking forward to seeing his passion filter in through the squad.

“What really is the best part about it is that it’s a collaborative relationship. He’s not just coming in saying, ‘Right, this is what I’m bringing. These are my principles, and this is how we’re doing it’.

“He’s sitting down with players to kind of go and get an understanding of like, ‘Okay, what do you want to achieve? What languages do you want to use? What words do we want to use? How do we keep continuity, but also keep pushing us to be better players as well?’.”

McMahon reiterated how special a World Cup this could be for Irish Rugby, especially as it is just across the water and with the team setting their sights on reaching the final weekend in Twickenham.

There are tough pool opponents to overcome, chief amongst them being reigning champions New Zealand who will be out for revenge after Ireland’s epic 29-27 WXV1 victory last September. Spain also ran Bemand’s charges close in the WXV3 decider in 2023.

If they reach the last-eight, Ireland’s pool crosses over with Pool D so their potential quarter-final opponents would be France, Italy, South Africa, or Brazil. Whatever lies ahead, there is a real determination to inspire those watching on in the stadiums and from back home.

“We want to be on the road to Twickenham. We want to be heading to London,” said McMahon, whose 2017 World Cup hopes were scuppered by injury before Ireland failed to qualify four years ago.

“I think every team that goes to a World Cup wants to try and achieve that, and I definitely think that this squad is certainly capable of that.

“We’ve said openly as a squad that we want to be heading to Twickenham. It’s the closest to a home World Cup that will happen in a long time, since the last one.

“It’s not just for now as well, you want to make sure of the legacy that’s left afterwards and that that becomes a new benchmark for where Women’s rugby and Women’s sport is.

“That is such a huge role for us as a squad, and our higher purpose is to inspire and leave that green jersey in a better place, so that young girls can support and drive the professionalism of the game even more on.

“Getting the backing of Ireland and getting the backing of the inspiration for young girls, for our families, for our friends.

“We want to make people proud, but we want people to come and support us as well, and get on ferries, get on plane trips, or watch it at home. We want to inspire everybody, and that is a huge goal for us as a squad.”