It's still very early days in Irish women's XV professional programme, but this weekend we'll get the first real glimpse of how the pieces are fitting together.
There were some green shoots during last year's TikTok Six Nations, where Ireland won two of their last three games against Italy and Scotland, but it was clear in their opening defeat to Wales that Greg McWilliams' side were still quite raw, particularly up against a Welsh side who looked much improved after handing out a number of professional contracts a few months earlier.
Assistant coach Niamh Briggs said she was taken aback by the improvements she'd seen in the team in recent months, while for the players who have been training full-time since November, the move into professionalism has been game changing.
"There's no doubt that it's been so helpful," says backrow Maeve Óg O'Leary, ahead of this Saturday's meeting with Wales in Cardiff.
The 23-year-old first started playing rugby at the age of 15 when her home club Ballina-Killaloe formed a girls' team, and says the move to full-time training has allowed her to improve at every aspect of the game, from strength and conditioning to analysis and skills work.
"For me personally, I'm still quite young so my training age and gym age, I haven't had the time, along with work or college, to have that much time in the gym, around recovery, analysis. You work your 9-5 and then go home, have a bite to eat and go training.
"Now that I'm here, I have my two hours to gym, 30 minutes after for recover, I have an hour to do analysis, and then go out onto the pitch.
"It's undoubtedly helped me, I've been able to get stronger in the gym. Your game understanding, having more time, has been the big thing, the time element. It's been great.
"I've tried to focus on all elements. You can't really be lacking in here, you need to be up to scratch in all of them. In the gym I'll be focusing on my strength, then off the pitch in our free time it's up to yourself, I chat to our analyst Cian, he has so much information.
"Then on the pitch, to train your hardest and do post training analysis. I've been trying to focus on all of them, and take them individually as you can. Being in here gives you the opportunity to be able to do that."
Maeve Óg is the second professional rugby player in the O'Leary house, following in the footsteps of her older brother Shane, who has won 14 caps for Canada, qualifying to represent them via their mother.
He was part of the Connacht side that won a Pro12 title in 2016, while he has played for a number of clubs in France and England in recent seasons, and is now lining out for Toronto Arrows in Major League Rugby.
And the younger O'Leary says her brother has been the perfect sounding board, having spent the past 10 years in the professional game.
"Shane's great, he's so helpful to me. He's gone through everything so I don't have to. He gives me all of the advice.
"A huge part I work on with him is the mental side of the game. It's something I think there needs to be more emphasis on. There's so many elements, it's hard to find the time for that as well, so that's the side of the game I focus on with him.
"I find him really helpful, he's been through literally everything, so he helps me with that, just around confidence, the psychology, there's so much in it. He's great and we get on really well."
England and France will expected to fight for the title once again this season, while it looks like Ireland will be scrapping it out with Wales, Scotland and Italy to be best of the rest.
The Munster back row will be vying to win her fourth cap against the Welsh this weekend in Cardiff, having missed out on the summer tour of Japan due to injury.
And she says she fully believes this Irish side can secure a top-half finish to the championship, before bridging the gap to English and French in the coming years.
"I get so excited because I fully believe we're more than capable of doing that.
"Maybe we're a little further behind, we're a young squad and have some experienced girls, but coming through the years I fully believe in this group that there is something really special brewing, and I think we're more than capable of doing that. I just can't wait for us to be able to go and play together and develop.
"Compared to last year, coming into the Six Nations last year we had a whole new coaching staff, so we're already ahead of where we were last year. We know our shape, whereas last year we nearly had to create it. I think, having players able to be centralised, and be in and around the environment.
"There's lots of girls in who might not have got their cap yet, but being in the environment is like the first step, and I think that having people in, whether they're capped or not, is already hugely helpful, and it gets them ready for when they do get onto the pitch."
Watch Wales v Ireland in the TikTok Women's Six Nations on Saturday from 2.15pm live on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player, follow a live blog on RTÉ.ie/Sport and the RTÉ News app and listen to live commentary on RTÉ Radio 1's Saturday Sport
Watch Munster v Glasgow (5.15pm) and Ulster v Vodacom Bulls (7.35pm) in the BKT United Rugby Championship on Saturday live on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player
