[Source: BBC]

Ireland’s women started their season with an impressive six-try win over Australia in Belfast, with back-row Aoife Wafer scoring a try in each half in a player of the match performance.

Ireland defeated Australia 36-10.

Three tries were scored in a frantic opening 13 minutes, with Aoife Dalton’s early try cancelled out by Wallaroos winger Maya Stewart, who scored again in the second half.

Wafer and Eimear Considine – who was back in Ireland’s 15s side for the first time in two years – put Ireland 17-5 ahead at half-time.

Eve Higgins, Wafer and Cliodhna Moloney all scored tries for the home side in the fourth quarter in a dominant Irish display.

This was the latest evidence of the improvement Ireland are making under coach Scott Bemand.

They played with the confidence and swagger of a team unrecognisable from the side that claimed the Six Nations wooden spoon in 2023.

The game marked the start of the IRFU’s 150th anniversary celebrations and for the Irish women, the first step on the road in a hugely important season.

They face a daunting WXV1 campaign to come at the end of September – their WXV3 victory in Dubai last autumn promoting them straight into the top tier – and the Wallaroos represented ideal preparation for those difficult tests against New Zealand, USA and hosts Canada.

Australia, ranked fifth in the world, had played five matches since Ireland last played here in Belfast almost five months ago in a memorable Six Nations win over Scotland – a win that earned them qualification for next year’s Rugby World Cup.

Yet from the start, the purposeful Irish dictated terms with real progression in attack and defence, continuing their upward trajectory, and they will hope to be an even more cohesive unit by the time the 2025 RWC in England comes around.

Given they hadn’t played for so long, and made seven changes to the side that started against Scotland in April, Ireland began and finished the first half with real gusto.

After early pressure dominating territory and possession, Dalton saw a gap and darted over from close range after five minutes, with Dannah O’Brien converting the opening try to put Ireland 7-0 up.

The home side’s linespeed and first-up tackles gave them a real foothold and control but Australia looked dangerous when they got the ball wide, and it was all too easy for Stewart to dot down in the corner after nine minutes.

In what was a frantic opening quarter, Wafer, who carried her outstanding Six Nations and inter-pro form with Leinster into this game, scored Ireland’s second try.

She gathered O’Brien’s well-time flat pass out wide to score in the corner to put Ireland 12-5 ahead.

It was a lead Ireland deserved given their good work in the tight and excellent ball-carrying by the forwards.

Every turnover was cheered loudly by a home crowd excited to see this latest chapter in Ireland’s resurgence as a force to be reckoned with in the women’s game.

That’s the way the scored stayed until just before half time.

Considine pounced on a stray Australia pass and kicked the ball on around the half-way line, gathered it and had the pace to run it in, leaving Ireland ahead 17-5 at the interval.

The game became scrappy in the third quarter with more set pieces and a raft of replacements made, with Siobhan McCarthy and Erin King coming off the bench to join Ruth Campbell and Vicky Elmes-Kinlan in making debuts for Ireland.

The home side finished with a flourish, the returning Sevens’ players making an impact, with three tries in the final quarter as well as two that were disallowed.

Camped on the Australia line, Enya Breen recycled the ball out to Higgins to score, with Breen converting.

Wafer capped a fine individual display with a lovely reverse pass from Amee-Leigh Murphy Crowe the highlight of the move to put Ireland 31-5 ahead approaching the final 10 minutes.

While Linda Djougang and Breen had tries disallowed, Moloney powered home from a maul with Ireland making good use of set-piece play all afternoon.

It was the final act of an opening game full of promise that augurs well for an Irish side re-emerging once again as a force in the women’s game.