Leinster and Ireland rugby player Stacey Flood said that the heartbreak of not qualifying for the World Cup is still "raw" but believes people should always "put things into perspective" when dealing with heartbreak in sport.
Ireland failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup in September after a last minute Scotland try meant defeat.
Speaking at the launch of Canterbury's new Ireland jersey, she said:
"Obviously it's still in process, it's not something you just get over in a day or two. We have to live with it at the minute and then it will be harder next year when the tournament itself is on. So, it's pretty raw still. There's still ongoing reviews and stuff. We just got to see what we can do and try move forward from it in the next games in November."
The result saw Adam Griggs announce his resignation as head coach. These upcoming internationals against Japan and USA will be his last before being replaced by Greg McWilliams. Griggs has been head coach since 2017 and has been involved in the sevens squad -as has Flood. She has played with the majority of her international career at sevens before making her 15-a-side debut last April. She spoke about the difficulty of the changing coaches.
"It's hard when you've been with a coach for a long amount of time. I had worked with Griggsy through sevens as well.
I suppose coaches come and go but the main thing is to try leave the jersey in a better place than we found it.
After the failure to qualify for the World Cup and the controversy over facilities for Irish provincial sides, the women's game in Ireland was under a microscope. Some clubs came out and spoke about a the lack of growth. Some former players like Fiona Coghlan described the current situation as 'rock bottom'.
Flood said it's important to put big defeats into perspective
"I think it's important to put everything into perspective. If you see the amount of people who are in hospital and put it into comparison to losing a rugby game. How much is that worth in life to someone else who is struggling with something outside of sports?
Putting things into perspective after big losses like that is important. Rugby is really a priority in my life but not to get too down about it because of all the other things going on in the world. It's not the end of the world."
Flood did welcome the news of the Women's Six Nations having its own window, separate from the men. The tournament will also return to its normal round robin format next year. Having their own window should hopefully highlight the women's game and increase the exposure of it.
Flood also expressed her excitement at the chance of playing the RDS for The November matches against Japan and USA. It will be the first time a women's team has played at the RDS. This will be the first time in Flood's career she has played in front of an Irish crowd. The last Ireland home game in front of a crowd was in the 2020 Six Nations. There they faced Wales where they won 31-14.
It's a time of transition in the Ireland squad as Adam Griggs has called up six uncapped players to the Ireland squad this week. The age profile of the squad has drastically gone down as well. It may be a difficult time in terms of success for this Irish team but giving young players the chance to come through could be the key to success further down the line.
Canterbury, the official kit partner to Irish Rugby, has revealed the new Ireland Rugby jerseys that will be worn by the men’s and women’s team throughout the 2021/22 season. Pictured at the launch of the new jerseys which are on sale now from Elverys.ie, in store and on Canterbury.com are Stacey Flood, Eve Higgins and Amee-Leigh Murphy Crowe.
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