Adam Griggs has urged his Ireland charges to show exactly what they're capable of after naming his team to face Scotland in the opening game of the Women’s Six Nations.
Griggs has named a strong side for the clash at Energia Park in Donnybrook on Sunday afternoon.
Sevens player Aoife Doyle makes her return to the 15s game after winning her first cap in 2015. She's joined on the wing by Beibhinn Parsons, with Lauren Delany named at full-back.
Sene Naoupu and Michelle Claffey make up the centre partnership with Ellen Murphy at out-half and Kathryn Dane at scrum-half.
Cliodhna Moloney is joined by Lindsay Peat and Linda Djougang in the front row. Aoife McDermott and Nichola Fryday form the second row with captain Ciara Griffin, Edel McMahon and Anna Caplice in the back row.
Munster duo Claire Keohane and Dorothy Wall could make their Ireland XVs debuts off the bench.
"The preparation leading up to the tournament has been very good," said Griggs.
"We’ve got a lot of work done through January as a squad and at this stage everyone is excited to get the Six Nations started and show the progress we've made.
"We’ve made no secret that last season’s results were not good enough and having a home game first up is the best possible way to start and put in a performance for ourselves and our home crowd.
"We want to make sure that Energia Park is a hard place for travelling teams to come and play so we must put our words into action and apply pressure from the very start.
"Scotland, first up, is a huge game for us. We are well aware what they can bring, and simply, we need to be on our game and deliver our best performance yet to get the tournament off to a winning start."
Ireland (v Scotland): Lauren Delany (Firwood Waterloo/ IQ Rugby), Aoife Doyle (Railway Union/ Munster), Sene Naoupu (Old Belvedere/ Leinster), Michelle Claffey (Blackrock/ Leinster), Beibhinn Parsons (Ballinasloe/ Connacht), Ellen Murphy (Gloucester-Hartpury/ IQ Rugby), Kathryn Dane (Old Belvedere/ Ulster); Lindsay Peat (Railway Union/ Leinster), Cliodhna Moloney (Wasps/ IQ Rugby), Linda Djougang (Old Belvedere/ Leinster), Aoife McDermott (Railway Union/ Leinster), Nichola Fryday (Old Belvedere/ Connacht), Ciara Griffin (UL Bohemian/ Munster, Capt), Edel McMahon (Wasps/ Connacht / IQ Rugby), Anna Caplice (Harlequins/ IQ Rugby)
Replacements: Victoria Dabanovich O'Mahony (Old Belvedere/ Leinster), Laura Feely (Galwegians/ Connacht), Leah Lyons (Harlequins/ IQ Rugby), Ciara Cooney (Railway Union/ Leinster), Dorothy Wall (Railway Union/ Munster), Nicole Cronin (UL Bohemian / Munster), Claire Keohane (Railway Union/ Munster), Laura Sheehan (UL Bohemian/ Munster)
Ireland’s Six Nations fixtures
Sunday 2 February - v Scotland, Energia Park, Donnybrook, 1pm
Sunday 9 February - v Wales, Energia Park, Donnybrook, 1pm
Sunday 23 February - v England, Castle Park, Doncaster, 12.45pm
Sunday 8 March - v Italy, Energia Park, Donnybrook, 1pm
Sunday 15 March - v France, Le Stadium, Lille, 3.35pm
RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player will have live coverage of all of Ireland Women's Six Nations matches in what is a crucial campaign for the team as they try to build momentum towards qualification for the 2021 World Cup in New Zealand.
Coverage begins on Sunday 2 February with Ireland v Scotland live from Energia Park (12.30pm, RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player) when Niamh Briggs and Fiona Steed will join presenter Daire O'Brien alongside Eddie O'Sullivan while Fiona Coghlan joins Des Curran on commentary.
RTÉ Player will carry live coverage of all the other games in the Women's Six Nations kicking off this Sunday (2 February) with Wales v Italy and France v England. Full details here.
