RTÉ Rugby podcast: The wait is over as Ireland prepare for World Cup return
We take a broad look at the tournament as a whole (2:35), and how the game has grown since the last tournament in New Zealand three years ago.
Hannah and Jonny give their verdict on how they expect Ireland to play in this campaign (16:05), with a focus on out-half Dannah O'Brien (22: 45), while we discuss how Scott Bemand will go about replacing the injured Erin King and Dorothy Wall, as well as Aoife Wafer who is set to miss the opening games (27:45).
And we take a stab at predicting our starting XV for Sunday's Pool C opener against Japan in Northampton (43:00).
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Extra.ie
an hour ago
- Extra.ie
Brian O'Driscoll: ‘Ambitious' Aoife Wafer boosts Ireland's World Cup hopes
The Rugby World Cup is here and now and one of the major talking points for Ireland ahead of their pool stage is the fitness of Aoife Wafer and Edel McMahon. The pair have had a less than ideal preparation for the World Cup as they've been injured and missed out on both warm-up games. Both have been absent due to knee issues but were still selected by Scott Bemand for the World Cup squad earlier this month. Aoife Wafer of Ireland, left, celebrates with teammates Edel McMahon and Amee-Leigh Murphy Crowe after scoring her side's second try during the Women's Rugby International match between Ireland and Australia at the Kingspan Stadium in Belfast. Pic: Oliver McVeigh/Sportsfile It's unlikely that either will start against Japan in Ireland's opening match but they'll be brought in mid-tournament. That could become an issue for some teams, not just for the fact that neither have prepped as desired but also squad cohesion, a player could've been working hard for the past 12 weeks to earn a spot in a matchday squad and they lose it straight away for someone returning from injury. That can be the case but for players as good as McMahon and especially Aoife Wafer, Brian O'Driscoll believe that their quality is enough for them to bring straight in. Brian O'Driscoll and Lynne Cantwell have teamed up to celebrate Defender as Principal Partner for the Women's Rugby World Cup 2025. Pic: Photocall Ireland Speaking at the Defender Event for the launch of the Women's Rugby World Cup, the Irish legend spoke about how bringing in players like Wafer and McMahon should boost the squad. 'The two [Wafer and McMahon] coming in, particularly Aoife Wafer with what she's done under the course of the last year, 18 months. Like, if she's fit and she's playing, you know, 80, 90% fit, she's going to add massive value to the team. 'She's going to improve the team and that's the reality of sport, where there's certain players, when they come in, they elevate everyone else's game, they make everyone feel as though they have a greater fighting chance and so I don't think he can ever look at it from a negative point of view when one of your stars returns to the team after injury.' Aoife Wafer of Ireland makes a pass during the Ireland V England, Women's Six Nations Rugby match at Virgin Media Park on April 12th, 2025, in Cork, Ireland. (Photo by Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images) There's pressure on this Irish team to perform after their results in the last year, especially for Wafer. Sometimes you forget how young she is as the 22-year old has quickly become Ireland's most important player and one of the best back rowers in Europe. O'Driscoll said that even at her age, she seemingly has the mindset to carry the expectation. 'Just listening to her she sounds like she's incredibly ambitious and has self belief and that's half the battle around genuinely backing yourself, around believing that you can be a world class operator and then putting yourself in a position to be able to deliver it.' 'Sometimes it's a bit frustrating when, maybe in the back of her head, she isn't in the perfect position to deliver what we have seen over the last 18 months, but I guess we'll see in the coming weeks what level she's at with her injury, but you want to perform on the biggest stage.' Brian O'Driscoll and Lynne Cantwell have teamed up to celebrate Defender as Principal Partner for the Women's Rugby World Cup 2025. Pic: Photocall Ireland O'Driscoll spoke about how despite his decorated career that he probably only has one good World Cup performance to show for it. He explains how a player like Wafer will want the team overall to perform and get the best result they can. 'I was lucky to play in a few World Cups and played well and one of them, probably, 2003 albeit, got beaten out the gate in a quarterfinals. So you put any personal satisfaction to one side because of the team disappointment. So I'm sure she'll just want to get the opportunity to pull on the jersey and to play really well, not just for her, but for for the progress of the team to bring them forward and elevate the overall, and kind of team outcome.' It all gets underway for Ireland this Sunday August 22 as they play Japan in Northampton at Franklin Gardens, with kick-off at 12pm live on RTÉ2. Defender partners with The Women's Rugby World Cup 2025, which runs from 22 August to 27 September in eight cities across England, kicking off with England vs USA at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland.
Irish Daily Mirror
2 hours ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Tommy Bowe questions woman's decision to bring child to tennis match
Tommy Bowe has questioned the decision of a parent to bring their child to a tennis match after the child in question disrupted the players by crying. Partway through the match between Emma Raducanu and Aryna Sabalenka at the Cincinnati Open, Raducanu complained about the crying child 'for ten minutes' to the chair umpire, who replied in seemingly disbelief by asking whether Raducanu wanted the child to be removed, to which Raducanu and some of the crowd responded in the affirmative. The British tennis star has come in for some criticism from some quarters for her remarks and attitude to the crying child, but she has a supporter in ex-Ireland rugby star Tommy Bowe who also believes the child shouldn't have been brought to the event. Emma Raducanu (Image: ISI Photos via Getty Images) Appearing on Ireland AM, the topic of Raducanu's comments came up, with Bowe being asked what he as a father of two would have done in the situation. Bowe told actor Gerard Jordan, who was appearing on the show, that he wouldn't have brought his children to such an event, and in an imagined scenario where a babysitter fell through at the last minute, the ex-rugby star claimed that in that situation he would have simply stayed at home with the children. "As a parent, I would know that it would be too stressful for me to take my child in there to be put in that situation. So I'd decide, no, I don't think it's worth upsetting the other people who are watching it and me being put under the stress of doing it. I'll watch it on the telly," said Bowe. Tommy Bowe Like Raducanu, Bowe has come in for some criticism for his comments, with one social media user saying "Disappointed in these comments. No compassion for that mom. Gerard Jordan is just trying to inspire people to put themselves in someone else's shoes for two seconds but y'all can't even do that." Others have defended Bowe, and have suggested that in a sporting event like tennis where the crowd remains mostly silent, perhaps a young child isn't suited to such an environment. As for the match itself, Sabalenka won in three sets as she continues to build momentum ahead of next month's US Open, where Raducanu will team with Carlos Alcaraz in mixed doubles action.
RTÉ News
4 hours ago
- RTÉ News
RTÉ Rugby podcast: The wait is over as Ireland prepare for World Cup return
Neil Treacy is joined in our new-look RTÉ Rugby podcast studio by former Ireland international Hannah O'Connor and ex-Munster out-half Jonny Holland as we look ahead to the start of the Women's Rugby World Cup 2025. We take a broad look at the tournament as a whole (2:35), and how the game has grown since the last tournament in New Zealand three years ago. Hannah and Jonny give their verdict on how they expect Ireland to play in this campaign (16:05), with a focus on out-half Dannah O'Brien (22: 45), while we discuss how Scott Bemand will go about replacing the injured Erin King and Dorothy Wall, as well as Aoife Wafer who is set to miss the opening games (27:45). And we take a stab at predicting our starting XV for Sunday's Pool C opener against Japan in Northampton (43:00).
