Dorothy Wall says she's eager to pick the brains of Scott Bemand, when the new Ireland women's head coach takes up his role this month.
The former Leicester and Bath scrum-half was appointed as Ireland's new head coach last month, replacing Greg McWilliams, whose 18-months in charge ended after Ireland's Six Nations wooden-spoon.
An experienced backs coach, Bemand moves to Ireland after eight seasons on the English coaching team, with whom he won six Six Nations titles and reached two World Cup finals.
And Munster flanker Wall says it can only be a positive for Ireland's inexperienced squad to get a close-up look at into how the world's number one ranked side operate.
"He's not in yet but he's exciting," she said ahead of the start of the 2023 Vodafone Women's Interprovincial Championship this weekend.
"He’s a women’s head coach, he comes from a winning women’s team so I think anything would be an improvement from our last season.
"It'll be good to have an insight into that [England’s success]. We haven't got there yet and, in a way, this is our lowest point so someone who’s had that experience and exposure can get us to a higher peak it’d be appreciated."
Although just 23-years-old, Wall is one of the more experienced members of a young Ireland squad, having won 20 caps since making her debut in 2019.
The Tipperary native will captain Munster in this afternoon's Interprovincial Championship opener away Ulster, filling in for regular skipper Nicole Cronin, and she's one of several candidates to be named Ireland captain after the retirement of Nichola Fryday last month.
Wall says she hasn't given any thought to the prospect of becoming Ireland captain, adding that whoever does will have big boots to fill.
"We have a lot of work to do, I think captaincy is the least of my worries and other players worries, we're just worried about getting momentum going again," the back row added.
"Nichola gave so much to an Irish jersey. I know it’s been said she retired early or whatever but she was probably the player who never went on holiday, who never missed anything. The hardest working, most diligent person you could come across, she gave everything to this place.
"It took from her at times too like, so she’s happy and she’s over in England and I wish her the best."
Bemand will name his new captain in due course, and the Interprovincial Championship over the next three weeks will be an interesting starting point for the incoming coach ahead of Ireland's WXV 3 campaign in Dubai in October.
Last season's Interpros were run off over three rounds in January, but they've since returned to their August/September window. And with the championship also extended by a week to include a finals round, Wall says it's an ideal preparation window ahead of the WXV.
"Oh it's a breath of fresh air. You’re a rugby player, you want to play rugby.
"Getting fit up here [in Dublin] and then going down to Munster for the level of coaching we get there and the toughness and detail of those sessions has definitely made me a better player in the last few weeks.
"I think this will work better. We’ll know have four games before we play international, I don’t think we’ve had that before. Game time is gold so we have four games to get ready."
Munster are going for a three-in-a-row of Interpro titles, but will be away from home for two of their round-robin games, taking on Ulster first up this afternoon (3pm), before travelling to Leinster in Round 3.
The opening game against Ulster has left the Wall family with a decision to make; at the same time as Dorothy (below) captains the women's side at City of Armagh RFC, her younger brother Andrew will be packing down at loosehead for the Munster U18 Boys Schools side as they also take on Ulster in Belfast.
"It's huge in our family, there’s great pride in it, I’ll do anything to wear a Munster jersey.
"It's why I love the game, I was obsessed when I was U16, 17, 18 thinking about the future and the chance to go out and play for Munster."
As a centrally contracted player with the IRFU, Wall is based out of the Irish Rugby High Performance Centre in Dublin, which makes for a grueling schedule during the Interpro campaign.
On Tuesdays and Thursdays she car-pools with her teammates Aoife Doyle, Maeve Óg O'Leary and Deirbhile Nic a Bháird to Limerick for Munster training, with the quartet only there for a watching brief at the Tuesday session.
The alternative, in Wall's mind, doesn't bear thinking about.
"It's a lot driving but sure look, I'm not going to play for Leinster any time soon, I’d be disowned!"
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