Munster Women Play at Musgrave Park for First Time

Munster women’s team will play Leinster in the Interprovincial Championship at Musgrave Park on Saturday at 2.30pm

For the first time in the history of Munster Women s rugby, the provincial team will play at a branch venue.

The Munster Women s team will take on their Leinster counterparts on Saturday 22 October at Musgrave Park in Cork, with a 2.30pm kick off.

Many years after Shannon and Highfield met at Thomond Park in the 2001 AIL final and the Irish National Women s team played their Six Nations match at the same venue from 2002 to 2004, the Munster Women finally get an opportunity to showcase their skills at one of Munster s home grounds.

It is very fitting that the opponents on this historic occasion are Leinster, the primary contenders to the title of IWRFU Interprovincial Champions. It has been a close battle between Munster and Leinster for the championship over the past 3 years, with nothing between them last season when both matches were drawn.

Both teams are coming off good wins in the opening round of the Interpro s, with Munster beating Ulster 40-0, while Leinster accounted for Connacht 47-3. Although both teams are now likely to meet each other in the championship final in late November, both teams will want to win the match and thereby get the psychological edge for the final.

The final match squads will be named after their respective training sessions this week. The full Munster training squad for the 2005 IWRFU Interprovincial Championships is:

Captain Patrique Kelly (UL-Bohemian)

Vice-Captain Jean Lonergan (Shannon)

Marie Barrett (Highfield), Louise Beamish (UL-Bohemian), Sarahjane Belton (UL-Bohemian), Helen Brosnan (Highfield), Alison Donnelly (Highfield), Jeanette Feighery (UL-Bohemian), Noreen Fitzgerald (Highfield), Amanda Greensmith (Shannon), Laura Guest (Clonakilty), Eavan Hunt (Clonakilty), Helen Jones (Highfield), Miread Kelly (UL-Bohemian), Karen Kelly (Highfield), Stacey Kucharchuk (Shannon), Deirdre Lynch (Highfield), Carol Murphy (UL-Bohemian), Joy Neville (Shannon), Jennifer Null (Shannon), Deirdre O Brien (UL-Bohemian), Tracie O Dwyer (Clanwilliam), Frances O Keeffe (Clonakilty), Natasha O Keeffe (Clanwilliam), Eimear O Sullivan (Clonakilty), Sharyn Sample (Shannon), Emma Stanley (UL-Bohemian), Denise Tracey (Shannon), Rachel Tucker (UL-Bohemian), Sandra Williams (Nenagh-Ormond)

Coach Tony Trehy

Assistant Coaches Fergus O Donoghue & Rohan West

Manager Henry Greensmith

Physical Therapist Helen Clare Fahey