Herzlichen Glückwunsch an die irischen Frauen zum dritten Platz bei Six Nations und zur Qualifikation für die Weltmeisterschaft! (großer Fortschritt nach dem Holzlöffel im letzten Jahr und dem Verpassen der letzten Weltmeisterschaft)

We got a new coach and most of the players who didn’t commit to the 15s last year returned. This was about the bare metal minimum required for the season and yet we still lost to Italy on top of the usual England/France hammerings.

We were winning Grand Slams and fighting for titles very recently, missing the last WC was an embarrassment and we still haven’t really adapted to the fully professional world England have foisted on the sport.

The almost comically poor full-time contracts the IRFU offered our girls which resulted in many of them continuing to be part-time because working in a school or an office meant a far better standard of living just isn’t enough to bridge the gap.

Lots of work to do if we’re to get to where we should be.