HAVING REACHED THE World Cup semi-finals for the first time, Ireland Women were ultimately undone by traditional tournament heavyweights, England.
Despite Ireland’s strong start yielding a try through Tania Rosser, England’s Chariot rolls on into the final for the sixth time in seven tournaments.
Here’s how it looked.
Last-minute prep
Nora Stapleton gets ready to guide the team
Lynne Cantwell and Ashleigh Baxter share a joke before they’re booted
Shoulder to shoulder
Claire Molloy and Paula Fitzpatrick tackle Jo McGilchrist
England's Danielle Waterman gets a tackle on Alison Miller
Ireland get off to a flyer as this maul brings the opening try
England soon began to show their pedigree, this Katherine Merchant try made the score 15 - 7
Ireland's powerhouse Sophie Spence was well-marshalled
And there were precious few gaps for Lynne Cantwell to raid
Joe calls home to break the news
Maggie 'The Machine' Alphonsi gets ready to attack the breakdown after Briggs is tackled
Bruised and battered, Lynne Cantwell can only watch from the bench as England rack up more scores
A dejected Niamh Briggs reacts at the full-time whistle
Sisters in arms: Grace Davitt and Jenny Murphy console each other after the game
Try-scorer Tania Rosser is inconsolable at full-time
Davitt, Cantwell and Ashleigh Baxter, together standing tall
All images ©INPHO/Dan Sheridan
