Ireland assistant Hugh Hogan has called on his side to take their opportunity to impress in this Saturday's Test against Australia in Belfast.
The Ireland women’s team welcome the Wallaroos to Ravenhill to mark the beginning of the IRFU’s 150th anniversary celebrations, with this game serving as a warm-up for Scott Bemand’s side ahead of their WXV campaign in Vanvcouver later this month.
A group of 35 players, plus an additional five training panellists have been in camp over the last week, with that squad set to be trimmed down to 30 before they depart for the WXV, where they will face world champions New Zealand, as well as Canada and the USA.
Hogan says the Ireland caching ticket are keeping an open mind when it comes to selection.
"There definitely will be an evolution, I think we saw some young players come in and have a really good impact in the Interpro series, so they are here on merit," he said.
"They've trained well and the selection will merit that. It's been incredibly competitive, and that's where we want to get to.
"For any team to be successful we need to build depth. To get into a training squad is competitive, we had four weeks of quality Interpro games, so to actually pick the panel was difficult.
"To narrow that for a 23 this Saturday, or a 30 that travels [to Vancouver] will definitely be tough.
"We have a selection meeting today where we will look at the group that's going to play against Australia. That doesn't mean they will travel, it means they have an opportunity.
"It's part of the mantra of the group that we want to compete, so every training session is a chance to compete. When you take to the field in an Ireland jersey, you're competing for your country."
The newly-appointed defence coach confirmed number 8 Brittany Hogan (above) will be available for selection after the Ulster back row saw her red card from the final round of Interpro games overturned at her disciplinary hearing.
Co-captain Sam Monaghan will miss this weekend’s game, and the WXV campaign following an ACL injury, but Ireland have been boosted by the availability of multiple Sevens players, including experienced trio Stacey Flood, Amee-Leigh Murphy Crowe and Eve Higgins.
"That's been a wonderful boost for the group because you've got highly experienced athletes in one code of the game coming in very quickly and getting up to speed and getting their competing hat on.
"I'd give them immense credit, immense credit. I think it would be possible that a group would come back and they may have been disappointed with the result of the Olympics, or may feel that this is a challenge that's difficult, but they've been awesome from day one.
"A very positive attitude, buying into the environment, hungry to learn and ask questions and get up to speed with the nuance of the game. It's presented a new challenge for them but they're more than able for it," he added.
Hogan is part of a new-look backroom team working alongside Bemand this year, with ex-England international Alex Codling [forwards coach] and former Exeter Chiefs Champions Cup winner Gareth Steenson [kicking coach] also new on board.
Denis Fogarty continues in his role of scrum coach, while former Ireland international Maz O’Reilly is working as a World Rugby Coach Intern.
Hogan (above), who was contact skills coach at Leinster until 2021 before spells at Scarlets and Suntory Sungoliath in Japan, takes on the role of defence coach after Declan Danaher’s departure for Gloucester.
While Ireland did lose heavily to England at Twickenham during the Six Nations, there had been a marked improvement in Ireland’s defence during Danaher’s short time working with the group in 2024, and Hogan says he is hoping to build onto an impressive foundation.
"I think when there's a good body of work in front of you the smart thing is to build on top of that. There's definitely a strong foundation in place.
"The players have strong belief in the work that's gone on before, and I'm trying to add to what's gone on before.
"We want to be aggressive; we want to go and have a mindset of getting the ball back. It's really important that we're building on the foundations of what went on in the Six Nations before with Declan Danaher. We saw a really good growth in this team in defence, so it's how we can add layers on top of what's already in place.
"I want to make sure that we can fill the field, see what's in front of us, and put linespeed, pressure onto the attack," added Hogan.
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