Fiona Coghlan’s Rugby Diary

The weather again was not ideal on match day, but it is the same for both teams so that can never be used as an excuse, and it is the team that plays the conditions that will come out winners.  We got off to a great start with a fantastic team try in the first 10 minutes, but Blackrock soon replied through a great break by centre Grace Davitt. 

Both teams were quite evenly matched, with us having the upper hand at set pieces, but with Blackrock winning the competition at the breakdown.  Blackrock were first to score in the second half, again through their outstanding centre Davitt, but we never gave up.

We worked back up the pitch to score a try, but unfortunately the conversion was missed to leave the final score 14–12 to Blackrock. Although I am disappointed with the loss, I think we played some good rugby, and it also highlighted areas we need to work on. 

The Friday before the match we had our Leinster players’ awards night, so I was out socialising with many of the Blackrock players I would face on the pitch two days later. That is one of the great things about rugby and sport – what happens on the pitch stays on the pitch. You can be fierce rivals on the field and still be best of friends off it. 
The awards ceremony and meal were held at the De La Salle Palmerstown rugby club. It was a really nice evening and a fitting function for the end of the season. We were all presented with our jerseys and various awards were given to players who performed well or improved during the season. The Player of the Year award went to Germaine Healy; the Most Improved Player was Ciara Kennedy; the Most Dedicated Player gong went to Lisa Morrissey; and Sinead Ryan was recognised as the Players’ Player of the Year

The Saturday after the Blackrock match was the final squad session before the team is reduced to the 26 players required for the Six Nations squad. Each individual had to stand up and be counted, but the coaches were looking to see how each player adapts to a team, not for someone going off on their own agenda. In the afternoon game, not an inch was given by either side. There was some bruising hits and some powerful running. 

 

The squad was due to be named last week, but as I write  it is still an anxious wait for everyone. After every session I try to reassess how I did and what I learned, but I just never know if it is enough or if it is what the coach is looking for.  Because players put so much into playing for the national team – giving up weekends to train and nights during the week to do strength and conditioning training – I think there is utter disappointment for players who don’t make the squad.  It’s a hard week for the coaches, too, as they will have some difficult decisions to make and then break the bad news to the players that didn’t make the cut.

After training, all the UL Bohs girls headed to Limerick for our club Christmas party. The men’s team had a convincing win in the AIL that day so everyone was in high spirits.  There was a good turnout from all the teams in the club and the committee too. And the following day the club gave the ladies team a table at a pre-match lunch for the Munster match, as well as tickets to the match itself, which was a lovely treat. In fairness to the club, they really are excellent support to the ladies team and are always involving us in club events. It was a great day and a great end to a brilliant weekend. 

So now we’re well into the festive season. But although we are not put on a drinking ban, we have to be sensible during this festive season. Yes, there will be nights out with a few drinks, but as athletes we need to be able to train the next day and strictly keep to our fitness programme. With the Six Nations now only a few weeks away, this time is vital, and I think every player understands that and has a responsibility to the rest of the squad to be sensible.

Fiona Coghlan is an Irish International rugby player. Her column appears every fortnight in Metro Eireann