British & Irish Lions
• British & Irish Lions tour Australia in 2013
Ireland Rugby
Ladies Challenges
England will probably win again with their depth and talent (at the ladies level at least!), and when the Irish ladies travel to London they’re likely to face grand-slam contenders who they’ve never beaten.
That will be the last thing on the ladies minds when they take on Scotland and Wales at home in the coming weeks, winning against either side would give them their best Six Nations to date!
- An impressive 19-0 win over Italy as a starting block wasn’t bad considering the team hadn’t played together in a year, and scored all the points in the second half – something was starting to click!
- Underdogs to the French saw them within touching distance at 19-17 after an hour, a concentration lapse let France in for the try and win the game 26-19.
Sarahjane Belton said:
It was another close defeat to the French this year and that’s always difficult to take when you were in a position to win the game. We will take a lot from it though, both the positives and areas we need to improve on and we’re looking forward now to Scotland. There is a definite confidence about the squad, and I think there’s a sense of both expectation and obligation to put things right in the next few games.”
Belton who was named in the World Cup All Star team in 2006 at number 10 has been lining out at at fullback recently and despite her injury has put some impressive performance in:
“I have a small bulge and tear in a disc in my lower back, which kept me out of action for eight months until January,” she explained. “As there are no real guidelines for treating such an injury it has been a long road coming back. I’m not yet fully recovered but by managing the injury carefully I can get by. It has been a frustrating year to say the least but it is great to be back in action.”
She also sees the challenge ahead of them (even before the trip to London):
“Scotland and Wales are always difficult sides to beat whether home or away. They have a good number of experienced players who know how to play the game to their strengths, often making it difficult for opposition to implement their game plan. Both teams will always fight until the bitter end, and we’ve no reason to expect anything different this year.”