The 2021 Rugby World Cup qualifier defeat to Spain has gone down in infamy, but the most recent meeting of the sides two years ago has quietly grown to be a significant day for this current Irish team.
That WXV3 campaign in Dubai went under the radar at the time, in part because of the level Ireland were playing at; Colombia and Kazakhstan didn't exactly provide Ireland with the greatest contests. Running concurrently with the men’s World Cup in France, it was an off-Broadway tournament.
Scott Bemand’s first campaign in charge of the Ireland women’s team ended against Spain, a revenge mission after the shock defeat in Parma two years earlier.
With 20 minutes left that evening, Ireland were staring down the barrel of another day to forget, 13-3 behind, before they rallied with tries for Grace Moore and Neve Jones, edging the contest 15-13.
"We’ve grown so much since then," Aoife Dalton says of that WXV3 win.
"I can't believe it was only two years ago. It feels like a lifetime ago."
Dalton was just 20-years-old and only a year into her Test career that evening.
Eleven of the matchday 23 from that game will be involved again tomorrow when the sides meet in Pool C of the Rugby World Cup, while six others from that day are part of this wider World Cup squad.
This is still a very inexperienced Irish group, illustrated by the fact that Linda Djougang wins her 50th Ireland cap this weekend, the first woman in eight years to hit a half-century of appearances for Ireland.
In terms of caps, Ireland rank quite low compared to some of the other sides expected to reach the knockouts of this tournament, but they have played the bulk of their rugby together since 2022, and have become a tighter unit.
"I suppose we just want to keep building as a group. When we were in Dubai two years ago, our end goal was always to qualify for this World Cup, but it was also to put in big performances against big teams and to try get people along with us.
"I’m a very different player. I was just 20 back then, and I probably didn’t even understand it half as much as I do now.
"We've all grown as a group, and because of that we’ve all grown individually. I’ve got to work with really good coaches over the last few years, a few defence coaches, Denis [Fogarty] does our breakdown stuff, and my role within the squad is really clear now and I know what everyone wants from me.
"If I can deliver that, I know I’m doing my part for the team."
A bonus-point win for Ireland against Spain tomorrow will guarantee them a place in the quarter-finals with a game to spare in the pool, although a win of any kind should also be enough, barring a shock between New Zealand and Japan.
Securing that quarter-final spot would take a huge amount of pressure off this Ireland side, and allow them a free hit at New Zealand in a pool decider in Brighton next week.
Scott Bemand’s decision to make seven changes to his side from last week’s 42-14 win against Japan would suggest there is half an eye on that meeting with the defending champions in the coaching room, but Dalton insists Ireland only have eyes for Spain.
"Last week, we didn't even think of Spain or New Zealand, it was just all Japan, and for the two weeks before we left.
"We just came into the competition taking it game by game. Each game, we go out and we want to win. We’re not afraid to say that, but we haven’t really spoken too much about qualifying or anything like that. We just want to go out and do our best.
"For us this week, even if we don't qualify, our mindset won't change for the following week against New Zealand.
"We haven't even thought about that yet, but if we do win, we qualify.
"We know that as a group if we go out and get a fast start and put our game out there, that we’ll be hard to live with," she added.
Ireland have improved considerably since that last meeting with Spain, and they come into the game eight places ahead of their opponents in the world rankings.
This week’s opponents lost twice to Japan during their warm-up campaign, while they were beaten 54-8 by New Zealand a week ago in York.
Ireland scored two tries in the opening 10 minutes against Japan, which set the tone for their win a week ago. And Dalton (above) expects a similar fast start will be needed.
"I was delighted with how quick we started last week. That’s what we went after. I probably sound like a broken record, but that's a non-negotiable for us.
"We just expect it of ourselves now. If you watch any of the Tier 1 games, they get a score on the board within minutes, and we want to be up there with them.
"We’ve changed a lot, we’ve developed a lot, but Spain have too. They were unlucky in their games against Japan in the warm-ups for the World Cup.
"I think it was 21-0 at half time against New Zealand so they come with their challenges. A lot of the backs, the girls know them from the Sevens circuit, so we just have to go in and try get our own game going, and a fast start again.
"I think they’re all quite lively players. They love ball-in-play, fast tempo, so we just have to stick to our plan of trying to get our game out there and not let them get on top," the centre added.
Listen to the RTÉ Rugby podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
Watch Ireland v Spain in the Rugby World Cup on Sunday from 11.30am on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player. Follow a live blog on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app. Listen to live radio commentary on RTÉ Radio 1 Extra.
