Linda Djougang says the short-term pain of this year's Six Nations will make way for some long-term gains for the Ireland women's side.
After two heavy defeats to Wales and France, Ireland resume their TikTok Women's Six Nations Championship against Italy on Saturday in Parma, with both sides looking to register their first wins of the championship.
Before the tournament started, a top-half finish appeared to be the Irish target, which would bring with it qualification for the top tier of the new WXV competition later this year.
Fourth place now looks like being a best case scenario for Greg McWilliams' side, but they will need away wins against both Italy and Scotland to make that happen.
And Djougang says they have to accept the reality that baby steps will be needed if they're to become a major player on the world stage again.
"I think it's part of the journey," the prop said.
"We have to take small steps to reach our goals. As a team, and management, we understand where we are. Every week we just have to get better. That's the goal, get batter each week and see something positive in that week and move on. It's going to come.
"We have a good pack, we have a good team. Losing is a good thing, at least we know what we have to work on, sometimes you have to lose to get better. I think we have that mentality.
"We're not winning the games, but we're taking so much out of it."
The 26-year-old (above) spent last season in France playing with ASM Romagnat before returning to Ireland in the autumn, signing a contract with the IRFU.
With 26 caps to her name since making her debut in 2019, the versatile prop is second only to captain Nichola Fryday in terms of Test experience from the squad that played against France last time out.
As one of the experienced players in the group, she has taken on more of a leadership role this season, but says she prefers to lead with her actions more so than with words.
"It's leading by example, that's the big thing about my game, having that experience and also being able to look at the youngsters coming through and showing them game management, and things like that. Those experiences come on game day when they really need you to stand up and perform. The minute you lead by example, they know what it takes, they're able to do their job.
"It's in our DNA that we don't give up until that last whistle. It's important this week that we have that mentality that no matter what comes our way, we just fight until the end."
And she cites her former Ireland captain as a big influence.
"Ciara Griffin really stood out for me, what she put out on the pitch, she was a player that really gave it everything on the pitch and led by example.
"It's so important for me, that's why I really look up to her. We all have fondness of that, that she'd die for the green jersey. It's having the eagerness to do that in every game, and it's something I've taken away from her, no matter what happens you play until the last whistle.
"Every opportunity you take, you don't know when you're going to put that green jersey on again."
Ireland shipped 53 points against France in Round 2, leaving them at the foot of the table ahead of the visit to Italy.
But Djougang says their week off has given them a chance to focus in on a number of areas where they are improving.
"Our set-piece was definitely stronger, something we worked on really hard after Wales, and that was really something that we looked at.
"Even though it was positive, we wanted to be even more positive. Our set-piece is something we can use as a weapon against other teams, so it was really good to work on, even more, on those aspects and also look at what we need to work on in our overall game.
"It was really important for us to sit down and have the week to do video analysis, and go out on the pitch and really hit everything, and set yourself mentally for Italy this week."
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