WOMEN'S SIX NATIONS PREVIEW Ireland v Italy: THE IRELAND women's coach Kevin West has named four new caps – Chris Fanning, Mary Louise Reilly, Nora Stapleton and Alison Miller – ahead of the Six Nations opener against Italy tonight in Ashbourne, Meath.
Ireland captain Fiona Coghlan stated: “With Italy you don’t know from one year to the other what their game plan will be because they’re further away, without much press and without a lot of news about their club games. They are the unknown.”
The team are based in Ashbourne RFC for the championship.
IRELAND: N Briggs (Clonmel/Munster); N Stapleton (Old Belvedere/Leinster), G Davitt (Blackrock/Leinster), S Houston (Blackrock/Leinster), A Miller (Portlaoise/Connacht); J O'Sullivan (Richmond/Exile), T Rosser (Blackrock/Leinster); F Coghlan (UL Bohemians/Leinster), C Fanning (Highfield/Munster), E McManamly (Blackrock/Leinster); K O'Loughlin (Clonmel/Munster), M L Reilly (Navan/Leinster); C Staunton (Galwegians/Connacht), C Molloy (Bristol/Connacht), J Neville (UL Bohemians/Munster). Replacements: G Bourke (UL Bohemians/Munster), L Day (Cooke/Ulster), C Mahon (UL Bohemians/Leinster), L Austin (UL Bohemians/Munster), L Beamish (UL Bohemians/Munster), H Brosnan (Highfield/Munster), E Downey (Cooke/Ulster).
Referee: Sarah Corrigan(ARU).
