What time and channel is Ireland v New Zealand women? Start time, TV info and teams news
"In terms of selection, we've had some good competition for places in recent weeks which has led to some difficult conversations.." says coach Scott Bemand
Edel McMahon will captain Ireland against New Zealand in Vancouver (3am Irish time) as Head Coach Bemand rolls over the majority of the side from the six-try victory over Australia earlier this month.
There is just one change in the Ireland backline, Stacey Flood starting at full-back with Eimear Considine switching to the right wing and Amee-Leigh Murphy Crowe retaining her place on the left, Enya Breen and Aoife Dalton make up the midfield pairing.
Says Dalton of the squad's acclimatising and having a run-out against France this week: "It has been really fun, we had a few days after we landed to find our bearings.
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"We have been to the city and around outside for a while so it has been really good to kind of get rid of the cobwebs off with our first training session.
"A few of the girls were kind of struggling with jet-lag and stuff so it was good to get used to the new environment.
"The match this week was really good, France are in the top five in the world now and they kind of gave us a flavour of something new. You can get pretty used to training against each other week in, week out so they definitely threw something new at us.
"Coming here is so cool, what an opportunity to play here against the World Cup champions, everyone is getting excited now especially after the Six Nations, where we were trying to qualify. It is what we set out for, we are in WXV1 and that's where we want to be."
In the pack, there is an unchanged front row as Niamh O'Dowd, Neve Jones and Linda Djougang with Dorothy Wall joined by Fiona Tuite in the engine room. Aoife Wafer is at blindside flanker, captain McMahon at openside and Brittany Hogan packs down at number eight.
Bemand has mixed youth and experience on the bench, with Clíodhna Moloney, Siobhán McCarthy, Grace Moore and Erin King joining uncapped prop Andrea Stock as the reinforcements up front, while backs Emily Lane, Eve Higgins and Vicky Elmes Kinlan complete Ireland's Match Day 23.
"We've had a really good training week here in Vancouver, including a valuable hit out against France on Wednesday," says Bemand.
"We're facing into three matches against the top teams in the world, and New Zealand first up on Sunday present physical and ball movements threats, so the training we've done and the intensity of the session against France has let us tune into that.
"In terms of selection, we've had some good competition for places in recent weeks which has led to some difficult conversations. We're pleased with how the group are performing, and we feel we've got the right blend in our Match Day Squad for the opening game of the campaign."
Sunday's match is live on RugbyPassTV.
Ireland (v New Zealand):
15. Stacey Flood (Railway Union RFC)(11)
14. Eimear Considine (UL Bohemian RFC/Munster)(27)
13. Aoife Dalton (Old Belvedere RFC/Leinster)(15)
12. Enya Breen (Blackrock College RFC/Munster)(22)
11. Amee-Leigh Murphy Crowe (Railway Union RFC/Munster)(10)
10. Dannah O’Brien (Old Belvedere RFC/Leinster)(16)
9. Molly Scuffil-McCabe (Leinster)(17)
1. Niamh O’Dowd (Old Belvedere RFC/Leinster)(8)
2. Neve Jones (Gloucester-Hartpury)(27)
3. Linda Djougang (Old Belvedere RFC/Leinster)(38)
4. Dorothy Wall (Exeter Chiefs/Munster)(29)
5. Fiona Tuite (Old Belvedere RFC/Ulster)(7)
6. Aoife Wafer (Blackrock College RFC/Leinster)(8)
7. Edel McMahon (Exeter Chiefs/Connacht)(captain)(29)
8. Brittany Hogan (Old Belvedere RFC/Ulster)(24)
Replacements:
16. Clíodhna Moloney (Exeter Chiefs)(35)
17. Siobhán McCarthy (Worcester Warriors/Munster)(1)
18. Andrea Stock (Trailfinders Women/IQ Rugby)*
19. Grace Moore (Trailfinders Women/IQ Rugby)(15)
20. Erin King (Old Belvedere RFC)(1)
21. Emily Lane (Blackrock College RFC)(7)
22. Eve Higgins (Railway Union RFC)(18)
23. Vicky Elmes Kinlan (Wicklow RFC)(1)
* denotes uncapped player
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