Women’s Six Nations: World Cup qualification ‘changes a lot of things’ for Ireland, says Scott Bemand

Ireland started the day in fifth but their gritty win over Scotland, as well as Italy’s loss to Wales in Cardiff earlier in the day, saw them finish in third for the first time since 2020.

The two-win campaign ensured not only World Cup qualification, but also promotion to the top tier of the WXV competition.

Bemand knows his side will have to improve for the step up in quality of opposition, but sees real potential for growth in his squad.

“There’s some bits we need to tidy up on, of course,” he said.

“We need to keep growing our game and the game doesn’t sit still long.

“You can’t just base it on trying to kick people into a corner and get what you get out of that, but there’s so much potential within the group.”

After this win was played in front of a crowd of 7,468 – a record for a standalone Women’s Six Nations fixture on the island of Ireland – Bemand sees next year’s World Cup as a huge opportunity.

“We’re seeing it with crowds, they’ve grown,” he said. “We’ve had three home games [in this year’s Six Nations], they’ve grown, grown three times.

“We’ve got an amazing opportunity now for these girls to show the influence they can have on the younger generations and people playing rugby.”