{"id":63716,"date":"2025-09-14T15:02:10","date_gmt":"2025-09-14T15:02:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/63716\/"},"modified":"2025-09-14T15:02:10","modified_gmt":"2025-09-14T15:02:10","slug":"heartbreak-for-ireland-as-france-rally-to-reach-womens-rugby-world-cup-semis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/63716\/","title":{"rendered":"Heartbreak for Ireland as France rally to reach Women’s Rugby World Cup semis"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n 3.25pm\u00a0Ireland\u2019s Women\u2019s Rugby World Cup campaign came to a shattering end as they were edged out of a nail-biting quarter-final by Six Nations rivals France at Sandy Park on Sunday.<\/p>\n

Link to the report just below. Until next time.<\/p>\n

\n 3.10pm Thanks for following our liveblog. Stay tuned to our website for Simon Lewis’ match report as well as they best of the reaction and analysis.<\/p>\n

\n 3.08pm Heartbreak for Ireland. They rue not scoring more before half time, deserved to be more than 13-0 ahead.<\/p>\n

But you can’t fault their effort. Fair play to France, who are through to the semi-finals.<\/p>\n

Ireland’s wait for a win in the knockout stages of the Rugby World Cup – men’s and women’s – goes on.<\/p>\n

\n FULL TIME: Ireland 13 France 18\n <\/p>\n

\n 83mins Ireland lose the ball and unfortunately lose the match.<\/p>\n

\n 83mins O’Brien again heads to the corner. Ireland lineout.<\/p>\n

\n 81mins Ireland fans roaring on their side.<\/p>\n

\n 81mins Ireland advantage. Six metres out from the French line.<\/p>\n

\n 80mins Ireland win the lineout and are driving forward.<\/p>\n

\n 80mins O’Brien kicks to the corner. Last chance.<\/p>\n

\n PENALTY REVERSED! IRELAND STILL IN IT.\n <\/p>\n

\n TMO reviewing the penalty.\n <\/p>\n

\n FRANCE PENALTY!\n <\/p>\n

\n 79mins Ireland win their lineout. Ireland on the attack.<\/p>\n

\n 79mins Yellow card for France. They will finish with 14. O’Brien kicks towards the corner, not great distance on the kick though.<\/p>\n

\n 78mins Break in play as a France player goes down injured after a collision with her own player.<\/p>\n

\n 78mins Lucky break for France as their kick squirms under O’Brien’s foot and goes into touch.<\/p>\n

\n 76mins Never in doubt, unfortunately. Bourgeois splits the posts with ther kick. Five between the teams now.<\/p>\n

\n 75mins Bourgeois going for the posts, which would mean Ireland would need a try to level it. Maybe even win it.<\/p>\n

\n FRANCE PENALTY!\n <\/p>\n

\n 74mins Ireland building. But France win the ball back.<\/p>\n

\n 71mins Ireland now back to 15 players and they are on the attack.<\/p>\n

\n 68mins Huge blow for Ireland. Just as they are building pressure, they lose the ball and Grisez races away to score a try. France now lead. Bourgeois misses the conversion from a tough angle.<\/p>\n

\n TRY FOR FRANCE!\n <\/p>\n

\"CharlotteCharlotte Escudero of France is tackled by Sam Monaghan and Neve Jones. Pic: Harry Murphy\/Sportsfile<\/p>\n

\n 66mins Double sub for Ireland. Jones and Monaghan off, Moloney-MacDonald and Corri-Fallon on.<\/p>\n

\n 62mins Fiona Halligan:\u00a0France’s momentum is growing and Ireland need to get their hands on the ball and hold onto it to try and stop the French purple patch..<\/p>\n

\n 60mins Big ten minutes now for Ireland, need to hold firm.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n 59mins Double blow for Ireland. Moments after going a player down for 10 minutes, Escudero crosses the line for a try. Great conversion by Bourgeois.<\/p>\n

\n TRY FOR FRANCE!\n <\/p>\n

\n 59mins TMO reviewing a tackle by Moore, who has just come on. Yellow card is the decision, dangerous tackle.<\/p>\n

\n 59mins Fiona Halligan:\n <\/p>\n

France growing into the game with the elements at their back. There are some errors creeping into the Irish game.<\/p>\n

\n 58mins Double sub for Ireland: Moore on for Hogan, and Perry on for O’Dowd.<\/p>\n

\n 55mins The weather doesn’t seem as bad in Exeter now compared to the first half. Although it is hard to tell from my living room in Cork!<\/p>\n

\n 54mins Ireland collect their lineout and the Irish fans are urging them forward. Not releasing called by the referee so France regain the ball.<\/p>\n

\n 53mins Ireland penalty and O’Brien heads for the corner.<\/p>\n

\n 52mins Brittany Hogan down injured so play has been halted.<\/p>\n

\n 51mins Fiona Halligan: Another error from Ireland obstructing in the lineout. Two successive penalties that will frustrate Ireland.<\/p>\n

\n 49mins Fiona Halligan: That’s frustraing there, massive penalty from the scrum that remains dominant and then having the penalty reversed for foul play.<\/p>\n

\n 48mins And she is going for the posts. And it drops over. France finally on the board. Great kick by Morgane Bourgeois.<\/p>\n

\n PENALTY FOR FRANCE\n <\/p>\n

\n 46mins Another scrum for Ireland. They’ll be pleased with this start to the second half.<\/p>\n

\n 44mins Ireland again going for the scrum, has worked well for them so far.<\/p>\n

\n 43mins Ireland win a penalty on their own 22 metre line.<\/p>\n

\n 42mins France on the attack now, they’ve plenty of work to do.<\/p>\n

\n 2.17pm SECOND HALF IS UNDERWAY!\n <\/p>\n

\n 2.06pm Simon Lewis in Exeter:\u00a0Ireland take a 13-0 into the half time break and it’s thoroughly deserved after making the most of the conditions and exploiting French edginess.<\/p>\n

Yet their failure to add a third try just before the break with a player advantage could cost them, 35 phases ending in a turnover.<\/p>\n

They’ll turn around playing into the wind and France surely will begin to apply pressure. Will 13 points be enough of a cushion?<\/p>\n

\n 2.05pm Fiona Halligan: Great first half from Ireland, very dominant in the scrum and forwards are leading the way.<\/p>\n

Ireland not giving France any space with quick line speeds and forcing errors and taking advantage of the yellow cards.<\/p>\n

\"Ireland'sIreland’s Eve Higgins is tackled by France’s Joanna Grisez and Gabrielle Vernier. Pic: \u00a9INPHO\/Ben Brady<\/p>\n

\n 40+8mins Wafer loses possession and France clear to end the half. Great half by Ireland. But of scurmish there at the end, sets up a fiesty second half.<\/p>\n

\n 40+7mins Ireland up to Phase 32 now. Still pushing, still trying to find a gap.<\/p>\n

\n 40+5mins Phase 12 of Ireland’s attack. They’re so close to another try.<\/p>\n

\n 40+3mins Ireland power forward with their scrum. Close to the French line again.<\/p>\n

\n 40+1mins Yellow card for France.<\/p>\n

\n 39mins Ireland kick to the 22metre line, looking for another score before the break.<\/p>\n

\n 39mins Scrum penatlies so far. France 3 Ireland 0<\/p>\n

\n 39mins Fiona Halligan: A great score, I thought it was going to drift wide there. Ireland still very dominant in the scrum.<\/p>\n

\n 38mins Rather than go for the corner, O’Brien kicks for the posts. Good decision, a great kick given the conditions and Ireland extend their lead.<\/p>\n

\n PENALTY FOR IRELAND!\n <\/p>\n

\n 36mins Fiona Halligan:\n <\/p>\n

It is a very un-French like performance but Ireland are putting great pressure on them with fast line speed and good scramble defence when needed.<\/p>\n

\n 34mins Tackles made stat update. France 99 Ireland 38. Three tackles missed by both teams.<\/p>\n

\n 34mins It took her a few moments but Wafer is back on her feet. Looks to be ok.<\/p>\n

\n 34mins Fiona Halligan: That doesn’t look good for Aoife Wafer, she is just back from a knee injury.<\/p>\n

\n 31mins France penalty and they take it quickly but they lose it close to Ireland’s 22. Think that was the first time they made it up that far!<\/p>\n

\"LindaLinda Djougang of Ireland scores her side’s first try during the Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 quarter-final match between France and Ireland at Sandy Park in Exeter, England. Photo by Harry Murphy\/Sportsfile<\/p>\n

\n 27mins A sliced kick clear gives Ireland a lineout on the 22 metre line. The girls in green claim it and are on the attack again.<\/p>\n

\n 26mins Fiona Halligan: The scrum is very dominant for Ireland and their forwards are on the front foot.<\/p>\n

\n 25mins Bernadou’s yellow card will remain just a yellow card. She will be back in play in just over three minutes.<\/p>\n

\n 25mins Left and wide again from O’Brien with her conversion. Really tough with the wind.<\/p>\n

\n 24mins Ireland move it quickly from right to left and Stacey Flood dives across the line. She even had a spare player over to her left if needed. Brilliant this from Ireland.<\/p>\n

\n TRY FOR IRELAND!\n <\/p>\n

\n 23mins Ireland send a line out too long but a France knock on gives Ireland a scrum close to the French endline.<\/p>\n

\n 21mins Great turnover by Ireland and the players celebrate as if they have scored a try.<\/p>\n

\n Fiona Halligan:\n <\/p>\n

Brilliant choke tackle there from Jones and O’Dowd to get the turnover.\u00a0 France had to make a change to bring in a front rower there for the scrum.<\/p>\n

\n 19mins Our other rugby expert (along with Simon Lewis, not me) Fiona Halligan says: Its brilliant pressure and line speed from Ireland to keep Fance in their half.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\n 18mins Yellow card for Bernadou for a high tackle. Bunker will check to see if it should be a red.<\/p>\n

\n 18mins Ireland again on the attack but play halted following a collision. TMO checking for a French high tackle. Bernadou is currently off with a HIA.<\/p>\n

\n 16mins So far france have made 41 tackles, compared to just eight for Ireland. France have hardly been in Ireland’s half as of yet. Famous last words.<\/p>\n

\n 13mins A nice kick towards the corner by O’Brien. Still a good distance out from the line though.<\/p>\n

\n 10mins From Simon Lewis earlier. He is in the stadium for us: Chucking it down here at Sandy Park but the atrocious weather is not dampening Irish spirits in the crowd.<\/p>\n

It will be an uphill task against a quality France side who have been building nicely coming into the knockout stages on their mission to break their World Cup semi-final hoodoo but Sam Monaghan’s team have a great opportunity to stage an upset today.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\n 7mins Tough kick by O’Brien in the wind and the rain drifts wide of the near post.<\/p>\n

\n 6mins And there will be no disallowing of this one. Djougang gets her first try of this World Cup. She played in France earlier in her career so a nice moment for her, I’m sure.<\/p>\n

\n TRY FOR IRELAND!\n <\/p>\n

\n 4mins A knock on in the build-up sees TMO disallow the try but it is a penalty for Ireland and they kick to the corner.<\/p>\n

\n TRY DISALLOWED!\n <\/p>\n

\n TMO REVIEW!\n <\/p>\n

\n 4mins Great start by Ireland and they get their rewards. Monaghan powers her way over the line for her first Irish try and Dannah O’Brien adds the extras.<\/p>\n

\n TRY FOR IRELAND!\n <\/p>\n

\n 3mins Great pressure by Ireland. They reclaim possession close to the line.<\/p>\n

\n 2mins Ireland fail to make the most of it and now it’s a France scrum.<\/p>\n

\n 1mins Mistake from France and Ireland have a scrum on their five metre line.<\/p>\n

WE ARE UNDERWAY!<\/p>\n

\n 12.59pm Before kick-off, just some sad news from the world of sport to bring you below.<\/p>\n

\n 12.57pm Hmmm, not going to lie, the French anthem is just much better. Isn’t it?<\/p>\n

\n 12.55pm And now the teams are out on the pitch. Time for the national anthems, starting with Ireland.<\/p>\n

\n 12.54pm The teams are in the tunnel.<\/p>\n

\n 12.52pm Irish fans in good voice, and in good numbers. As always.<\/p>\n

\"IrelandIreland fans ahead of the match. Pic: \u00a9INPHO\/Ben Brady.\"IrelandIreland fans ahead of the match. Pic: \u00a9INPHO\/Ben Brady.<\/p>\n

\n 12.48pm\u00a0And sure while we are talking about rugby. This is surely of interest to Irish, and French fans.<\/p>\n

In their first home outing of the season, Ronan O\u2019Gara\u2019s La Rochelle condemned Christophe Urios\u2019s Clermont to a second defeat in a row.<\/p>\n

For more, click on the link here.<\/a>\n <\/p>\n

\n 12.40pm The weather looks horrendous in Exeter. Really wet, really wind. Should that suit Ireland?<\/p>\n

\n 12.38pm Here is a reminder of the Ireland team to take on, and hopefully defeat, France.<\/p>\n

\n Ireland: 15. Stacey Flood (Railway Union RFC\/Leinster) 14. B\u00e9ibhinn Parsons (Blackrock College RFC\/Connacht) 13. Aoife Dalton (Old Belvedere RFC\/Leinster) 12. Eve Higgins (Railway Union RFC\/Leinster) 11. Amee-Leigh Costigan (Railway Union RFC\/Munster) 10. Dannah O\u2019Brien (Old Belvedere RFC\/Leinster) 9. Aoibheann Reilly (Blackrock College RFC\/Connacht) 1. Niamh O\u2019Dowd (Old Belvedere RFC\/Leinster) 2. Neve Jones (Gloucester Hartpury) 3. Linda Djougang (Old Belvedere RFC\/Leinster) 4. Ruth Campbell (Old Belvedere RFC\/Leinster) 5. Sam Monaghan (Gloucester Hartpury\/IQ Rugby) – captain 6. Fiona Tuite (Old Belvedere RFC\/Ulster) 7. Aoife Wafer (Blackrock College RFC\/Leinster) 8. Brittany Hogan (Old Belvedere RFC\/Ulster).<\/p>\n

\n Replacements 16. Cl\u00edodhna Moloney MacDonald (Exeter Chiefs) 17. Ellena Perry (Gloucester Hartpury\/IQ Rugby) 18. Sadhbh McGrath (Cooke RFC\/Ulster) 19. Eimear Corri-Fallon (Blackrock RFC\/Leinster) 20. Grace Moore (Trailfinders Women\/IQ Rugby) 21. Emily Lane (Blackrock College RFC\/Munster) 22. Enya Breen (Blackrock College RFC\/Munster) 23. Anna McGann (Railway Union RFC\/Connacht).<\/p>\n

\n 12.30pm Welcome all to our liveblog on a huge day for Women’s rugby in Ireland.<\/p>\n

My name is Andrew Horgan and I will be talking you all through the best of the action as the Girls in Green take on France in the Women’s Rugby World Cup quarter-finals.<\/p>\n

Ireland have never won a knockout game at the Rugby World Cup – Men’s and Women’s – but today would be a good day to change that.<\/p>\n

Kick-off is at 1pm so before then, fell free to read the best of the previews below from our website.<\/p>\n

Ciara Griffin believes that\u00a0 Set-piece battles and playmaker duels define World Cup quarter-finals<\/a>\n <\/p>\n

After their defeat to New Zealand last time out, Ireland ready to bounce back against France says Aoife Dalton.<\/a>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"3.25pm\u00a0Ireland\u2019s Women\u2019s Rugby World Cup campaign came to a shattering end as they were edged out of a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":63717,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[18303,18302,9,10,18,13,14,6,19,17,11,12,15,16,5,7,8],"class_list":{"0":"post-63716","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-headlines","8":"tag-irish-womens-rugby","9":"tag-womensrwc","10":"tag-breaking-news","11":"tag-breakingnews","12":"tag-eire","13":"tag-featured-news","14":"tag-featurednews","15":"tag-headlines","16":"tag-ie","17":"tag-ireland","18":"tag-latest-news","19":"tag-latestnews","20":"tag-main-news","21":"tag-mainnews","22":"tag-news","23":"tag-top-stories","24":"tag-topstories"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63716","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=63716"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63716\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/63717"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=63716"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=63716"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=63716"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}