Latest news with #FreyaMacColl
South Wales Argus
2 days ago
- Sport
- South Wales Argus
Dalgliesh proud of players' development despite three defeats
Having lost their opening two fixtures to England and Wales, Scotland fell to a 62-7 defeat at the hands of Ireland in their final game in Caerphilly. The Scots fought valiantly throughout and showed brief moments of promise against Ireland, with Freya MacColl's converted try their high point of the match. The results from the final day of #U6NSummerSeries action 🤩 — Six Nations Under-20s (@SixNationsU20) July 17, 2025 But Dalgliesh, who thought her team played will in patches, admitted the scoreline was in part due to the way she'd instructed her team to approach proceedings. She said: 'I didn't set the team up well enough in terms of attack. I've got to take responsibility for that element. During the first half, when we did get out of our own half, we showed a little bit of promise when we found space.' Despite the results on the pitch over the last two weeks not going Scotland's way, Dalgliesh remained positive and took heart from how far her team had come since they joined up. 'We came together as a group about 12 weeks ago,' she continued. 'We've not had consistent contact time, but it's been good to see the connections that have formed in that time and the development in individual players. I think individually, if I look at every player who's been involved, I can see progression in them. 'I can see development and I can see areas that they've really worked hard to improve. They've got to be proud of themselves for that and ultimately, I'm proud of them for that as well.' Dalgliesh explained the defeats during the Women's Summer Series had been painful but was full of praise for the opportunity to play three matches against tough opposition, which she said will ultimately benefit her squad. She added: 'Having competitive opportunities is massive. We know that our players are not always exposed to that. The Summer Series is a real important step in our pathway to allow us to prepare players to go on and play for the national team. 'Ultimately as much as some of the results and parts of the performances will hurt us from this summer, we will also learn a huge amount as a group.' Discover the future of international rugby at the 2025 Women's Summer Series – where rising stars shine. Follow the action live at and on Instagram @u20sixnations.
The Herald Scotland
3 days ago
- Sport
- The Herald Scotland
Dalgliesh proud of players' development despite three defeats
The Scots fought valiantly throughout and showed brief moments of promise against Ireland, with Freya MacColl's converted try their high point of the match. The results from the final day of #U6NSummerSeries action 🤩 — Six Nations Under-20s (@SixNationsU20) July 17, 2025 But Dalgliesh, who thought her team played will in patches, admitted the scoreline was in part due to the way she'd instructed her team to approach proceedings. She said: 'I didn't set the team up well enough in terms of attack. I've got to take responsibility for that element. During the first half, when we did get out of our own half, we showed a little bit of promise when we found space.' Despite the results on the pitch over the last two weeks not going Scotland's way, Dalgliesh remained positive and took heart from how far her team had come since they joined up. 'We came together as a group about 12 weeks ago,' she continued. 'We've not had consistent contact time, but it's been good to see the connections that have formed in that time and the development in individual players. I think individually, if I look at every player who's been involved, I can see progression in them. 'I can see development and I can see areas that they've really worked hard to improve. They've got to be proud of themselves for that and ultimately, I'm proud of them for that as well.' Dalgliesh explained the defeats during the Women's Summer Series had been painful but was full of praise for the opportunity to play three matches against tough opposition, which she said will ultimately benefit her squad. She added: 'Having competitive opportunities is massive. We know that our players are not always exposed to that. The Summer Series is a real important step in our pathway to allow us to prepare players to go on and play for the national team. 'Ultimately as much as some of the results and parts of the performances will hurt us from this summer, we will also learn a huge amount as a group.' Discover the future of international rugby at the 2025 Women's Summer Series – where rising stars shine. Follow the action live at and on Instagram @u20sixnations.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Ireland end 2025 Six Nations Women's Summer Series on a high with win over Scotland
By Phil Campbell Doubles from captain Jane Neill and Robyn O'Connor ensured Ireland finished their 2025 Six Nations Women's Summer Series on a high after downing Scotland 62-7 in their third and final fixture. A try in each half from Player of the Match Neill, alongside O'Connor's brace and scores from Alma Atagamen, Emily Foley, Sophie Barrett, Tara O'Neill, Aoibhe O'Flynn and Saoirse Crowe capped off a brilliant performance from Ireland, who secured their second win of the competition having also beaten Wales in their opening game in Caerphilly. Much to their credit, Scotland refused to drop their heads during the encounter, getting themselves within one score of Ireland at 14-7 thanks to Freya MacColl's try, but ultimately ended their campaign with three defeats. Ireland started the game the stronger of the two sides and immediately put their opponents under pressure, pinning Scotland inside their opening 22. The possession high up the field proved to be fruitful for Ireland, as Neill opportunistically dived over to give her side a third-minute lead. That prompted a strong response from those in blue and almost registered their first points of the game, but Poppy Mellanby's attempted pass to Emily Norval just went into touch. Atagamen profited from an Irish lineout taken short after 13 minutes as the second row burst through to score, and Ellen O'Sullivan-Sexton's superb conversion – one of four successful kicks from the tee during the afternoon for the fly-half – stretched the lead to 14-0. Scotland hit back midway through the half as MacColl dotted down in the corner after good work from Mellanby and Clara Dunne. But Foley's try on 25 minutes ensured Ireland went into half time with a two-score lead. Louise Taperell's yellow card five minutes into the second 40 minutes further helped Ireland's cause, who a minute later, through Barrett and the boot of O'Sullivan-Sexton, added another seven points to their tally. O'Connor's darting run down the left wing threatened a fifth Irish try, but it was Neill who got it a few minutes later, crossing the whitewash for her second score of the game. Ireland continued their relentless push for more points, adding their sixth and seventh tries just after the hour mark. O'Neill was able to athletically reach over from close-range before O'Connor got a much deserved try four minutes later, her blistering pace carrying her down the left wing all the way over the try line to make the score 43-7. O'Connor continued to threaten the Scottish defence with her speed, crossing over for her second score with 12 minutes to go and late tries from O'Flynn and Crowe – both converted by Caitriona Finn - rounded off the comprehensive victory.
South Wales Argus
5 days ago
- Sport
- South Wales Argus
2025 Six Nations Women's Summer Series: Scotland v Ireland
Expect sparks to fly as Scotland take on Ireland in the 2025 Six Nations Women's Summer Series. The rivals kickstart Round 3 with the first game of the day at the Centre for Sporting Excellence in Ystrad Mynach, Caerphilly and both sides are itching to bounce back from defeats in Round 2. Last time out saw Ireland go down 41-12 to France, with Scotland losing 52-29 to Wales but both sides now have the chance to end their campaigns on a high. You can catch all the action live on YouTube right here. TEAM NEWS Scotland head coach Louise Dalgliesh has made ten changes to the matchday 23, with Poppy Fletcher named captain and Emily Norval vice-captain. Props Fletcher and Eilidh Fleming join Megan Hyland at hooker, with Aisha Zameer partnering Gemma Thomson in the second row. In the backrow are blindside flanker Merryn Gunderson, Lily Crisp at openside and Emily Coubrough the number eight. Emily Love and Ceitidh Ainsworth are the half backs, while the midfield remains Lucy MacRae and Nicole Flynn. Freya MacColl, who scored two tries against Wales last week, starts on the wing, joining Norval and full-back Poppy Mellanby. Ireland Head Coach Niamh Briggs has made the same number of changes to her side, with Grainne Burke, Maebh Clenaghan and Lily Morris in the front row. Beibhinn Gleeson and Alma Atagamen make up the second row, while Rosie Searle comes in behind them with Jane Neill and Jemima Adams Verling. May Goulding and Ellie O'Sullivan Sexton are the half backs, with Luicia Linn and Clare Dunne in the centres. Emily Foley and Katie Corrigan take up the wing spots and Lyndsey Clarke starts at full back. Player to watch - Freya MacColl The Scotland wing scored twice and assisted Poppy Mellanby against Wales last weekend after coming off the bench and has been rewarded with a first start of the Series. What they said Scotland head coach Louise Dalgliesh said: 'We had a really positive start against Wales to start the scores with a penalty early on but from there Wales got four tries from our possession, so we were really disappointed with that but ultimately it came from our own errors. 'I think when you take that first 20 minutes away, we actually outscored them 26-24, so we have shown how competitive we can be when we get the detail right, but we gave ourselves far too big a task to do after that. 'There's a lot of lessons we are taking away from that in terms of mindset and mentality, and that is what we are taking into this final game against Ireland. I think overall we can be pleased with what we have done in this competition so far, we have shown some fantastic attacking rugby and had glimpses of the physicality we bring in defence. 'Now we're looking to string all of that together for an 80-minute performance, and ultimately that's what it will take to get the result we are looking for on Thursday.' Team News Scotland: 15. Poppy Mellanby, 14. Emily Norval, 13. Nicole Flynn, 12. Lucy MacRae, 11. Freya MacColl, 10. Ceitidh Ainsworth, 9. Emily Love; 1. Poppy Fletcher, 2. Megan Hyland, 3. Eilidh Fleming, 4. Aisha Zameer 5. Gemma Thomson, 6. Merryn Gunderson, 7. Lily Crisp, 8. Emily Coubrough Replacements: 16. Karis Craig, 17. Louise Taperell, 18. Megan Riach, 19. Holly Wilson, 20. Sophie Price, 21. Rebekah Douglas, 22. Holly McIntyre, 23. Lisa Brown Ireland: 15. Lyndsey Clarke Ennis, 14. Katie Corrigan, 13. Clara Dunne, 12. Lucia Linn, 11. Emily Foley, 10. Ellie O'Sullivan Sexton, 9. May Goulding; 1. Grainne Burke , 2. Maebh Clenaghan, 3. Lily Morris, 4. Alma Atagamen, 5. Beibhinn Gleesonn, 6. Rosie Searle, 7. Jane Neill, 8. Jemima Adams Verling
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Scotland desperate to finish Six Nations Women's Summer Series on high against Ireland, says MacRae
Lucy MacRae says Scotland are desperate to end the 2025 Six Nations Women's Summer Series on a high when they take on Ireland on Thursday. Following an opening day 31-17 loss to England, Scotland suffered their second defeat of the competition at the hands of hosts Wales losing 52-29 last Friday. Having been 28-3 down after 36 minutes, Scotland rallied with four tries of their own, outscoring their opponents 26-24 over the next 44 minutes. Advertisement 'We want to finish really strong,' the 20-year-old said. 'We've had some really good moments throughout this campaign, in the English and Welsh games. 'The vibe in camp is pretty positive. We've been doing mini challenges within the squad that keep the competition and excitement up. 'Another positive is everyone has gotten closer and closer as the camp has gone on, and we're really looking forward to kicking on into that Irish game and hopefully ending in a positive manner.' At the Centre for Sporting Excellence in Ystrad Mynach, Caerphilly, Ceitidh Ainsworth scored just before half-time and then Freya MacColl grabbed a double after the break, either side of Poppy Mellanby's try to see Scotland show real fight against Wales. Alongside that second-half performance, Scotland fought valiantly against England in Round 1 and enjoyed periods of success against the Auld Enemy. Advertisement MacRae acknowledged the challenge now for her and her teammates was to put together a complete performance across a full 80 minutes. 'A rugby game is never going to be perfect,' the inside centre continued. 'We're expecting that there's going to be mistakes from both sides, that's just the nature of sport. "But we're looking to link up all those moments that we've had and be slightly more consistent with it. 'And if we can do that, I know for a fact that if we do what we've been doing in training, we can definitely bring it come Thursday.' Ireland also go into the final round of fixtures looking to bounce back from a defeat in Round 2 where they were downed 41-12 by France. Advertisement But having won their opening match against Wales 27-10 and led France 12-10 during the first half last time out, MacRae is more than aware of the threat Ireland will pose. 'They've obviously got quite a lot of pace on their wings,' she added. 'They all have a physical pack but we're aware of how Irish teams play and we're excited to get stuck in.' Discover the future of international rugby at the 2025 Women's Summer Series – where rising stars shine. Follow the action live at U6N | SIX NATIONS - YouTube and on Instagram @u20sixnations.
