Ireland are set to lose a number of players from their Six Nations squad, with the World Sevens Series in Vancouver clashing with Ireland’s finals Six Nations clash against Scotland.
This is something that head coach Greg McWilliams would have known in advance of the tournament, but ideally could have done without the disruption.
Ireland face the mighty England at Welford Road on Sunday. England are undefeated after three games and have a points differential of +179, so Ireland could really use a full-strength squad.
However, Ireland will lose a number of their back line from the victory over Italy, with Stacey Flood, Béibhinn Parsons, Lucy Mulhall, Anna McGann, Brittany Hogan, Eve Higgins and Amee-Leigh Murphy all included in the Sevens squad that is seeking to qualify for the Sevens World Cup in September.
Laura Feely, Laura Sheehan, Mary Healy, Shannon Touhy, Sene Naoupu and the uncapped duo of Niamh Byrne and Alice O'Dowd have been called up for the remaining fixtures.
McWilliams discussed the loss of these key players yesterday.
“Unfortunately we failed to qualify for the World Cup and we felt it was important to give the Sevens the chance to be successful because we want nothing more than for Ireland to be successful whether it is 15s or 7s,” McWilliams said.
Speaking after the victory over Italy, Jenny Murphy and Sene Naoupu highlighted the impact that this will have on the team, particularly losing Stacey Flood, who has impressed at fly half and centre.
Ireland are set to lose a chunk of their back line to the Sevens team.@jennymurphy045 & @SeneNaoupu believe Stacey Flood in particular is going to be a huge loss.#IREvITA #TikTokW6N pic.twitter.com/U0XCguBauK
— Virgin Media Sport (@VMSportIE) April 10, 2022
“The way Stacey Flood is playing at the moment you would like to keep her within the Six Nations squad because she is a game changer.
She’ll be a loss against a team like England
A lot of the tries that have been scored have been through either a touch from Stacey or a couple of passes from her.”
In an ideal situation, the players would be a make a decision that is fully rugby-based when it comes to making themselves available. However, other factors play a part.
As it stands, players that play for the Sevens side are seen as semi-professionals, and therefore receive a wage.
The 15s players are seen as amateurs and therefore remain unpaid.
England and France currently have their women’s side under professional contracts, with Wales currently having a number of players under contract.
Italy have also made the announcement today that 25 players will be given annual part-time contracts.
The difference in investment can so far be seen in results, particularly in the defeat to France.
While Ireland had shown some positives in the game, including Eve Higgins’s brilliant try, the gulf in quality was there to be seen.
Ireland are on the board thanks to a superb team try, finished by Eve Higgins. #RTERugby #FRAvIRE #TikTokW6N
📺 Live on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player: https://t.co/CStwnXf2cB
📱 Updates: https://t.co/70rl8WRt7Q pic.twitter.com/5rKEzXLv19— RTÉ Rugby (@RTErugby) April 2, 2022
Kickoff against England on Sunday is noon.
