England defence coach: Ireland 'most dominant team in the Six Nations with how they hit'
Picture: ©inpho/ben Of Wales' By Lewis Linda Is Djougang Bethan Brady Tackled Ireland
IT will take something out of the ordinary for Ireland to shock England at Twickenham on Saturday, but the comprehensive Musgrave Park win over Wales has the Red Roses on heightened alert.
That and the fact that one of their former number, Scott Bemand, is now shaping the future of the women’s senior squad in Ireland.
Familiarity works both ways, though. If there’s anyone who knows what it’s like to face Ireland, it’s Sarah Hunter, the most capped England player in history of women’s rugby and current defence coach for the Red Roses.
“Scott’s come in and really given them some direction and organisation on both sides of the ball,” she said on Tuesday.
“Obviously they've brought Dannah [O’Brien] in too who has shored up their defence to no end. I think they’re the most dominant team in the Six Nations with how they hit.
“Seeing some of their players in the PWR (Premiership Women's Rugby) week in week out and playing against them gives us an idea of their quality. They will certainly prove a tough side to break down but we’ve got a plan of where we think we can get at them and how we can put pressure onto them and how we can hopefully break through."
Bemand has implemented some aggressive tactical changes since kicking in as Ireland head coach last year and Hunter thinks this, coupled with England’s current style of play, will make for an easy-on-the-eye clash in front of what is expected to be around 45,000 fans.
“The really good thing is it’s two teams who want to play attacking rugby, both have an attacking mindset and disposition so it will make for a great positive game of rugby and it will give those fans something to watch and enjoy.
“We know we need to be patient but we have identified a few areas where we think we can break them down. When they’ve got the ball you can see what they’re trying to do.
“We’ve obviously spent time with Scott in the past and know how he might want to play. We’ve now got the challenge of trying to stop that. Ireland have certainly been a lot more organised in their attack, a lot more threatening, they’ve scored tries from all over the park.”