Ireland star Erin King is open to the idea of a move to England ahead of the British and Irish Lions Women's tour in 2027 but hasn't had her head turned by the proposed R360 league yet.
The 22-year-old is currently rehabbing from a knee injury suffered during last spring's Six Nations that saw her miss out on the Rugby World Cup.
The back row forward admits that her recovery has had its up and downs, but she can see the light at the end of the tunnel and is confident that she'll be back for next year's Six Nations.
"Things are going really well now," the Wicklow woman, who was born in Sydney and grew up in Dubai and Qatar before her family returned to Ireland when she was 12, told RTÉ Sport.
"The first few months were a little uncertain at times but I'm finally back running, and looking ahead to maybe being back on pitch for February time so definitely be back for the Six Nations, which is really exciting.
"Initially, it was tough to take, missing the World Cup was a big one. Rehab has been a different thing. It's been tough.
"There have been some dark days but, at the same time, I'm becoming better at other aspects of my game and doing things outside of rugby.
"It's been an up and down rollercoaster of emotions but I'm sure I'll look back in a few years time and be thankful for this experience, I've come out the other end a better person and a better player."
King, who played with Ireland on the SVNS World Series and was part of the squad that took part in the 2024 Olympics, burst on the XVs scene with a series of impressive displays in 2024.
She scored three tries as Scott Bemand's side beat New Zealand and USA at WXV1 12 months ago and was named World Rugby's Breakthrough Player of the Year last November.
King (above) was sorely missed by Ireland at the World Cup as Bemand's charges fell just short in the quarter-final to France.
The R360 breakaway league has struggled to gain momentum.
The plan, spearheaded by former England player Mike Tindall, is to have eight men's and four women's franchises taking part in 'Grand Prix' style events at various locations, such as Barcelona, Miami and Dubai in a contracted season outside of the international windows.
Their main selling point appears to be increased salaries for the players and King has the type of profile that they would target.
The IRFU and most of the other unions say that they won't consider R360 players for selection and King says she is content where she is.
"At the moment I'm really happy in the IRFU," she said.
"They are taking good care of me with my rehab and getting me back on my feet and back on the pitch.
"For the time being I'm really enjoying my rugby in Ireland. The main thing for me is just getting back representing the green jersey on the international stage for now.
"Obviously, in years and years to come who knows what will come of that tournament and things like that.
"At the moment, I'm really happy in Ireland and have no plans of going anywhere else."
However, King, who lines out with Leinster and the Wolfhounds in the Celtic Challenge, is more open to following international team-mates like Aoife Wafer, Edel McMahon, Dorothy Wall, Neve Jones and Sam Monaghan, who all ply their trade in England's PWR league.
With an inaugural Lions Women's tour scheduled for 2027 in New Zealand, King admits her selection hopes would be best served playing at the highest level available.
She said: "Definitely. I think if you do want to be selected for that Lions tour you do want to be playing against the best and with the best in the world and yeah, the best international players are playing in the Prem over in England.
"Yeah, my options are definitely open for next year, for the year after and leading into that Lions tour.
"I'm still young so I'm not too worried but wherever I can better myself and become the best player I am going to do it.
"If that means going to England that means going to England, if that means staying here that means staying here.
"I guess I'll just play it by ear and see at that moment in time what's going to make me be the best I can be."
King and Wall, who also missed the World Cup due to injury, were asked to present the jerseys to the squad ahead of their clash with Les Bleues in Exeter.
"It was really emotional, there was a lot of tears, we spoke from the heart," she said. "It was really special. It was one of the best experiences I've ever had."
For the moment, King's focus is on getting back to full fitness and revealed that she needed a reset to help with her recovery.
"I had 10 days off from my rehab and I went to Vietnam, just went on my own and kind of did the whole 'find yourself' kind of thing," she said.
"It helped me a lot with my injury and kind of gave me some new motivation.
"It was the rest I needed to come back and want to continue to work hard because I'd kind of hit a lull in my rehab.
"When you are going in the doing the same thing every day it does get a bit repetitive.
"I'm so happy that I decided to go and I never would have done if I wasn't injured. It gave me new life experiences, going someone all by yourself, I'm so glad I did it."
