{"id":824,"date":"2025-09-05T13:12:09","date_gmt":"2025-09-05T13:12:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/824\/"},"modified":"2025-09-05T13:12:09","modified_gmt":"2025-09-05T13:12:09","slug":"ireland-taking-energy-from-the-green-wave-and-some-good-coffee-spots-for-new-zealand-clash-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/824\/","title":{"rendered":"Ireland taking energy from the Green Wave, and some good coffee spots, for New Zealand clash \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

Months were reduced to weeks, then days in the countdown to the World Cup<\/a>, with the focus on training and game plans until we eventually found ourselves in the tunnel at Franklin\u2019s Gardens awaiting the start of the first game. <\/p>\n

In our opening two matches of the tournament against Japan and Spain we managed to get most of what we had spoken about beforehand on to the pitch. While not every box was ticked there were enough positives in our victories as we prepare for Sunday\u2019s final pool match against New Zealand (kick-off 2.45pm).<\/p>\n

\"\"Ireland set up New Zealand showdown<\/p>\n

We are heading for the quarter-finals irrespective of what happens over the weekend but that doesn\u2019t make us any less determined. A great deal has happened since the last column, not least the two pool matches but also some lighter moments which I\u2019ll touch on later.<\/p>\n

In general terms we got the results we wanted, the performances were decent, not perfect but there were sufficient purple patches in-game where we executed the game plan precisely for us to take confidence from as we embrace our toughest pool fixture.<\/p>\n

It was with some sadness that we said goodbye to Whittlebury Park Hotel, Spa & Golf Resort that looked after us so well; beautiful grounds, a golf course or two, and Silverstone racing circuit just up the road.<\/p>\n

[\u00a0Ireland v New Zealand: TV details, kick-off time, team news and moreOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

Our favourite place though was a coffee shop called the Forge. What is it about rugby players and their coffee? Last Monday morning we swapped Northampton for Brighton but not before we boosted the workload and the tills of the Forge one last time. Well, some of us did.<\/p>\n

We had a team meeting at 9.30am and by the time we got out friends and family had formed a disorderly queue at the coffee spot. Those players who hesitated, or more accurately were a little late, lost the chance of a caffeine hit to take on the journey to England\u2019s south coast.<\/p>\n

On the bus, I caught myself thinking about our two matches in Franklin\u2019s Gardens. It\u2019s an intimate venue with the crowd very much on top of you and it\u2019s even more special when it\u2019s predominantly Irish supporters. We fed off the energy of the crowd, \u2018The Green Wave\u2019 helped us make a big splash.<\/p>\n

\"StaceyStacey Flood during Ireland’s pool match against Spain. Photograph: Ben Brady\/Inpho <\/p>\n

Let me tell you a small bit about \u2018The Green Wave\u2019 and its standing in the team. It\u2019s about growing the women\u2019s game in Ireland from coast to coast, getting people behind the team and getting young girls or boys to go pick up a rugby ball. It\u2019s a connection on and off the field. Sometimes we\u2019ll refer to it as the strength and power of the wave in our defence, our resilient Irishness, or the relentless work ethic. It\u2019s something that\u2019s bigger than all of us.<\/p>\n

Relocating to Brighton, we travelled in hope of sun, sand and the delights of the famous Palace Pier, only to be greeted by stormy conditions as the rain and wind lashed against the seafront where our hotel is located.<\/p>\n

On match weeks the intensity in training ratchets up the closer you get to game day, and there is no occasion bigger than facing the reigning world champions, New Zealand. We played them in the WXV1 last November, when Dannah O\u2019Brien\u2019s conversion secured a famous victory<\/a> \u2013 our first over the Black Ferns since the celebrated victory at the 2014 World Cup.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s important that we stay in the moment and not think about the game day and night. Luckily there are plenty of distractions. A range of good coffee shops have provided shelter from the brunt of the gales and slanting rain. There are loads of vintage and charity shops to explore and some of the girls have been diligent in hunting down preloved goods.<\/p>\n

Nails and eyelashes have been booked into the timetable on our days off. Girls have been to the sauna and ice baths. Everyone deserves a treat and a pamper. The week has flown by, the gym and pitch sessions, the team meetings, all geared to Sunday\u2019s game.<\/p>\n

\"StaceyStacey Flood celebrates with her family after Ireland’s win over Spain. Photograph: Ben Brady\/Inpho <\/p>\n

We\u2019ve also had a bit of fun on TikTok and Instagram. Some of the girls are very entertaining. It gives people an insight into what we get up to when we aren\u2019t on the field and how creative people can get in their downtime.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s been 22 days and counting in camp, so there\u2019s been a few moments when you need to take yourself away or be with your people. We are very lucky Ireland is so close. Our family and friends are over at the weekends for the games and getting to spend time with them after games, even having breakfast and coffee the following day, is such a threat. It\u2019s like a part of home is here.<\/p>\n

\u2018Our people\u2019, as our manager Elaine refers to the Ireland supporters, have arrived in growing numbers day by day. The game is being reported as a 31,000 sell-out. If it is, it would guarantee a brilliant atmosphere.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s appropriate that Sunday\u2019s game takes place in a stadium in a seaside town when we are looking to draw inspiration from our \u2018Green Wave,\u2019 in front of whom we want to give a performance that will make all concerned proud.<\/p>\n

The training is done, the Amex Stadium awaits, and the spotlight is on. No one is thinking beyond Sunday and next week\u2019s trip to Exeter for the quarter-final. It\u2019s about staying in the moment. If you can\u2019t be there, catch us on the telly (RT\u00c92, live coverage from 2pm). We appreciate the support.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Months were reduced to weeks, then days in the countdown to the World Cup, with the focus on…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":825,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[61,60,1254,43,1255,1256],"class_list":["post-824","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ireland","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-ireland-womens-rugby","tag-news","tag-rugby-world-cup","tag-stacey-flood"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/824","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=824"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/824\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/825"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=824"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=824"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=824"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}