Beginning her ninth international season, Béibhinn Parsons was back with a bang as her brace of tries - including a 75th-minute match winner - helped Ireland to prevail 31-24.
Parsons' seasonal debut was delayed by an ankle injury, which meant she missed out on playing at the home of Connacht Rugby during the recent Vodafone Women's Interprovincial Championship.
Ireland head coach Scott Bemand admitted they had to 'hold her back one week' - leaving her out of the squad to play the USA in the Vodafone WXV Series opener - just to make sure she was fully ready to return.
It coincided with the Green Wave rolling back into the city of the Tribes, perfect timing for her to quickly recapture the form which saw her score a first-half hat-trick against Italy at the same venue in April.
Acknowledging that her focus was just on playing again and slotting back into the team, she said afterwards: "That's the main thing, just being back with the squad and getting to train and play. I love training, so being part of the group is so special to me.
"Yeah, I was definitely raring to go. Being my first game back after injury, I just wanted to hit the ground running and do my role as a winger, on the edge.
"Like, if I get the opportunity to finish, well and great, but there's a lot of things that have to go right before then. It was more about staying present and being in the moment."
The 24-year-old certainly did that, as apart from her two-try tally, she racked up a team-high 155.2 metres from 14 carries, beat four defenders on two line breaks, and landed all five of her tackles.
You can see how much playing for her country means to her, especially given the adversity she had to overcome when two leg breaks in 2024 put her Rugby World Cup hopes in doubt.
She got back in time to play at last year's global tournament in England, and then had one of her best Guinness Women's Six Nations campaigns to date, running in four tries.
Indeed, her strike-rate has been excellent over the last 14 months, with a total of nine tries in as many appearances for Ireland, and five in seven for the Clovers in the Celtic Challenge.
Eight years on from becoming Irish Rugby's youngest ever senior international player, male or female, at the tender age of 16, Parsons is the second longest-serving member of the current squad, behind Clíodhna Moloney-MacDonald.
Injuries and Sevens commitments have meant she has not always been available, and she admitted: "Definitely I look at some of the cap numbers when we have the jersey presentation, and I'm like, 'God, how are we on the same number?'.
"So yeah, I've definitely missed a couple of games, a good few campaigns and fixtures, but it's all about the squad and where we're at now.
"I think this squad is going places, so to be part of it now and be present is really important."
2026 has seen Parsons get the chance to play twice for Ireland at her home provincial ground, registering five tries across those two games in front of her family and friends.
She was also a try scorer for the Clovers in March's Celtic Challenge semi-final win over Gwalia Lightning at Dexcom Stadium. The 3G pitch is obviously to her liking.
"It is just really special to be in Galway, and all my family be here and stuff. It's just special to play at home.
"The atmosphere in Dexcom was great (today), it always is. So, hearing the roar of the crowd and getting over the line twice meant a lot.
"It was a really tight game, Japan put us to the wire. So, the last try was more just the relief of, 'Okay, this sort of puts us in the clear now'."
Her try double against the Japanese took the Ballinasloe native to 24 tries in 37 Test appearances, and drew her level with the legendary Alison Miller at the top of the Ireland Women's try-scoring charts.
Miller, the 2013 Grand Slam winner, was a player that Parsons looked up to when she was growing up, and she was lucky enough to play alongside her for Connacht in 2019.
They are very much wingers of the same mould in terms of their speed, athleticism, and finishing ability, and Irish Rugby has been blessed to have the pair star at the highest level in both 15s and Sevens.
"I put Ali Miller in such a high regard. We played one season together in Connacht, and I got to see how she operated.
"She pops up with a bit of advice here and there, and it's always welcome."
Looking ahead to the rest of this autumn international window and beyond, she added: "I think, this team, we want to go places and we need to fix a lot of stuff on the pitch. I've a lot to work on and there's a lot more things I want to do."
