The more engaging aspect of Ireland’s first ever women’s Sevens World Series tournament win on Sunday is with an eye on the real goal later this year, the Olympic Games. That’s what makes it perhaps the most exciting development in Sevens rugby since the Irish team began to compete seriously on the world circuit.
Beating the best team in the world, Australia, in Perth for the gold medal marks a significant step forward for coach Alan Temple-Jones and his squad as well as an end to the cruel 29-game losing streak to the Australians.
The only previous time Ireland beat Australia was in 2013 on their World Series debut in Guangzhou, China.
A long way down the road from that outing over a decade ago, the win firmly places Ireland as genuine contenders for a podium place as the months countdown to Stade de France. The team has always said that’s where they were headed. Beating the Australians in front of the biggest rugby crowd in Perth since the Wallabies drew with the Springboks in a men’s 15s Tri Nations match in 2017, stiffens that resolve.
Late last year in the high performance centre at Sports Campus Ireland, Temple-Jones spoke about the team’s ambitions and how he hoped they would progress in the World Series.
“There’s eight massive steps to lead into the Olympics, which we’ve got to use to make sure we’re ready and prepped to not just go and make up the numbers,” he said. “We really want to go as a group and compete for medals, that’s our job. We want to go and perform.”
Temple-Jones came in as head coach last March after previously being the Ireland Sevens’ head of athletic performance. He spent two seasons with the Sharks in his native South Africa before returning to the Sevens base in Dublin. He has also continued to embrace the successful transitioning of players into Sevens rugby from other sports with Meath Gaelic footballer Vikki Wall involved.
It was former Wicklow GAA footballer Lucy Mulhall’s try that gave Ireland the lead in the final against Australia. Before that she scored two tries in Ireland’s impressive 31-7 semi-final defeat of Britain, played in sweltering conditions. France in July could be similarly hot.
However, one of the most important ingredients of the win in Perth is that Ireland held their nerve and toughed it out against the home team and one of the Olympic favourites. Australia came back to level the match but Ireland had the poise and ability to grasp the moment; a fundamental shift in momentum in the right direction.
The women’s Olympic tournament takes place from July 28th-30th. Both the women’s and men’s three-day events will be played in the famous stadium in St Denis, where the Olympic athletics event is also being staged.
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