Womens' rugby Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread

Ah ye.....I wasn't expecting the Shelbourne.

Probably best to head on out early as you say. Looking forward to it. Delighted to able to share the same experiences as I have with my son with my daughter. Hopefully th first of many.

Thanks for the helpful and decent response (unlike others).

Parsons could be in bother for that swinging forearm fend.

Turgid stuff

Ireland were betting favourites for this match

They certainly have a well shaped game plan, it is a matter of confidence, match experience and leadership. Like what Peat and Tyrrell are saying about taking ownership of the ball, and making your voice heard for decisions like that first half penalty kick eschewed.

I think we'll beat one of Wales or Scotland, probably Wales, then go to England and get boshed. But that will be progress in a big rebuild. A huge one.

We were at the game - there was a great atmosphere at it and for personal reasons I was delighted to be in attendance for a record crowd. In fairness to the crowd, they really did get behind the team.

But not going to lie, the handling errors were tough to watch. At one stage early in the second half, at 7-15, Ireland had a spell in the Italian half - they came close to line once or twice, then there was a cross field kick that went backwards. Eventually they created space out on the left wing and the ball was knocked on. The players themselves were getting visbily frustrated. There was a really awkward silence in the crowd at that stage.

But back to yesterday and the record crowd. I think the IRFU need to decide on a base for the Women's team and build on it. I think think the RDS is the place to do it. All the sponsors were getting involved too. The kids came home with a few goodies, delighted with themselves. As an event, yesterday was a resounding success.

I really think the IRFU should commit to a single venue. I think it's really important for every team to have "a home" - it's helps connect the players and supporters. It will also help build consistency and capitalise on the momentum which is important commercially (whether we like it or not). Look at the football team and how they made the Tallaght Stadium their spiritual home. Yesterday was a great day for the game, but the next 2 games are in Cork and Belfast. Be interesting to see what attendances are like. We might try and make the trip to Belfast.

Whether we like it or not, commercially Dublin probably makes sense. Reality is it's probably the biggest market and equally inconvenient to those travelling.

Our family experience yesterday was brilliant.

Top drawer result great work indeed. Improvements from last year are coming on all the time. Might be a tough against England but Scotland can offer a chance of a second win.

Tumbleweed......

This is over, of course. But they do absolutely need a win in one week's time at home to Scotland, and you'd wonder what psychological impact a day like today will have on their ability to get up and ready for that.

Panicking with the ball can be a curse. No real complaints from me as it was always going to be a tough game. The newbes will learn from it.

When you look at that 6 Nations table, the entire tournament is incredibly weak. A great England side, a decent French one and then four bad ones, at varying stages of mediocrity.