James Topping's charges turned in another couple of impressive performances to beat France, the Hamburg 7s winners who are fielding a changed squad in Croatia, and Portugal.
Led by captain Megan Burns, Ireland were in clinical form during their 33-0 win over les Bleues to finish top of Pool A, before scoring five unanswered tries against quarter-final opponents Portugal.
Alana Fitzpatrick, Katie Corrigan, and Amy Larn touched down in the second half against the Portuguese to ensure Ireland's progress to a Cup semi-final against Germany tomorrow (kick-off 11.58am local time/10.58am Irish time).
This is a repeat of the recent play-off clash in Hamburg where the German side registered a 19-5 victory. You can watch the Split semi-final live on www.rugbyeurope.tv and Rugby Europe's YouTube channel.
In the shootout for Pool A's top spot, played in blinding morning sunshine, Ireland dealt with France's early attacking efforts before finding a way through to take a second-minute lead.
Eve Higgins unlocked the French defence with a timely burst of acceleration and a strong hand-off to get away from Marie Lefrancois. She followed up with a pinpoint conversion from the right.
Ireland stayed connected in defence, keeping France out of scoring range, and when they got possession back, Emily Lane's neat show-and-go saw her scamper clear from 80 metres out for try number two.
It remained 14-0 up to half-time despite growing French pressure, along with a yellow card for a turnover-seeking Kathy Baker, at the end of a series of team penalties.
It was a yellow apiece just over a minute into the second half, as Lefrancois was sin-binned for a high tackle on Robyn O'Connor. Baker came back on shortly afterwards.
When a subsequent French attack broke down, Lane brilliantly fixed two defenders to counter at pace from deep, and had Higgins up in support to complete her brace.
France were back to their full complement by the time that the Irish advantage was increased to 26 points. After Fitzpatrick had cut infield with good intent, Burns sent Larn over in the left corner.
It was Burns who wrapped up the scoring late on. Inside the final minute, she dummied and found a sliver of space between two defenders for a classy 45-metre run-in.
Very good work at close quarters saw Lane put Ireland ahead against Portugal inside 90 seconds. She evaded two tacklers on her way to the try-line, with Clare Gorman swiftly converting.
Portugal then had a prolonged period of defending as an initial loose lineout, seized upon by Faith Oviawe, and strong running from Fitzpatrick and Burns pinned them back.
A couple of penalties led to Burns tapping to snipe over in the fifth minute. The Portuguese, still starved of territory, were content to reach half-time with a deficit of a dozen points.
Howeer, Ireland continued to suffocate their opponents on the restart, resulting in three more tries without reply. Baker barged through with a dominant carry, setting up Fitzpatrick to score from a Lane pass.
Corrigan then widened then margin to 22 points, firstly applying pressure at the breakdown and then raiding over out wide on the left after Chisom Ugwueru had pounced on a loose ruck ball.
With only seconds left, the girls in green put together another well-constructed attack from a scrum, freeing up Larn to cross on the right via an Ugwueru assist.
IRELAND WOMEN'S SEVENS SQUAD (2026 Rugby Europe Women's Sevens Championship Series - Croatia 7s, Stadion Park Mladeži, Split, Croatia, Friday, July 24-Sunday, July 26):
Alana McInerney (UL Bohemian RFC/Munster)
Alanna Fitzpatrick (Blackrock College RFC/Leinster)
Amy Larn (Old Belvedere RFC/Leinster)
Chisom Ugwueru (UL Bohemian RFC/Munster)
Clare Gorman (Old Belvedere RFC/Leinster)
Emily Lane (Blackrock College RFC/Munster)
Eve Higgins (Railway Union RFC/Leinster)
Faith Oviawe (Railway Union RFC/Connacht)
Kathy Baker (Blackrock College RFC/Leinster)
Katie Corrigan (Old Belvedere RFC/Leinster)
Megan Burns (Blackrock College RFC/Leinster) (capt)
Robyn O'Connor (Old Belvedere RFC/Leinster)
Vicky Elmes Kinlan (Wicklow RFC/Leinster)
IRELAND WOMEN'S SEVENS SCHEDULE - Croatia 7s Tournament:
Friday, July 24 -
POOL A:
IRELAND 33 CZECHIA 5, Stadion Park Mladeži, Split
Ireland: Tries: Eve Higgins, Megan Burns 2, Kathy Baker, Katie Corrigan; Cons: Eve Higgins 2, Clare Gorman 2
Czechia: Try: Veronika Bolfova
HT: Ireland 14 Czechia 5
Team: Faith Oviawe, Kathy Baker, Vicky Elmes Kinlan, Emily Lane, Eve Higgins, Megan Burns (capt), Alanna Fitzpatrick.
Replacements used: Robyn O'Connor, Alana McInerney, Clare Gorman, Katie Corrigan, Amy Larn.
IRELAND 43 TÜRKİYE 5, Stadion Park Mladeži, Split
Ireland: Tries: Amy Larn, Robyn O'Connor, Katie Corrigan, Chisom Ugwueru, Eve Higgins, Alana McInerney, Kathy Baker; Cons: Eve Higgins 3, Clare Gorman
Türkiye: Try: Ayca Akcinar
HT: Ireland 26 Türkiye 0
Team: Katie Corrigan, Robyn O'Connor, Faith Oviawe, Amy Larn, Clare Gorman, Eve Higgins (capt), Chisom Ugwueru.
Replacements used: Alana McInerney, Megan Burns, Vicky Elmes Kinlan, Emily Lane, Kathy Baker.
Day 1 Round-Up: Ireland Women Build Winning Momentum In Split
Saturday, July 25 -
POOL A:
FRANCE 0 IRELAND 33, Stadion Park Mladeži, Split
France: -
Ireland: Tries: Eve Higgins 2, Emily Lane, Amy Larn, Megan Burns; Cons: Eve Higgins 3, Clare Gorman
HT: France 0 Ireland 14
Team: Vicky Elmes Kinlan, Kathy Baker, Alana McInerney, Emily Lane, Megan Burns (capt), Eve Higgins, Alanna Fitzpatrick.
Replacements used: Robyn O'Connor, Clare Gorman, Amy Larn, Faith Oviawe, Chisom Ugwueru.
CUP QUARTER-FINAL:
IRELAND 27 PORTUGAL 0, Stadion Park Mladeži, Split
Ireland: Tries: Emily Lane, Megan Burns, Alana Fitzpatrick, Katie Corrigan, Amy Larn; Con: Clare Gorman
Portugal: -
HT: Ireland 12 Portugal 0
Team: Faith Oviawe, Kathy Baker, Alana McInerney, Emily Lane, Clare Gorman, Megan Burns (capt), Alanna Fitzpatrick.
Replacements used: Katie Corrigan, Robyn O'Connor, Chisom Ugwueru, Vicky Elmes Kinlan, Amy Larn.
Sunday, July 26 -
CUP SEMI-FINAL:
IRELAND v GERMANY, Stadion Park Mladeži, Split, kick-off 11.58am local time/10.58am Irish time
Click here for the Croatia 7s results, fixtures & pool tables.
(Photos by Neil Kennedy and Travis Proctor via Rugby Europe)
