'Harsh words will be had' insists Fryday

By Michael Glennon
2/4/22

Ireland captain Nichola Fryday admits that some harsh words will have to be spoken in the aftermath of their six-try loss to France in Saturday’s TikTok Six Nations match in Toulouse.

The error count on the Irish side should make for a harsh review. With 50% possession, Ireland made 27 handling errors, few of which came under direct French pressure. Greg McWilliams’ side were turned over six times, often trying to play deep in their own half.

"We probably tried to play in the wrong parts of the pitch and a team like France are going to put you under a lot of pressure if you are trying to play out of your 22," admitted second row Fryday after the 40-5 loss.

McWilliams and Fryday both spoke about their pride in the team’s collective effort but that is a given at this level.

Despite promising to put up a "fight" before the game, the litany of errors and the collapse of the set-piece never allowed them to establish a foothold in the game against Annick Hayraud's professional outfit.

Offaly native Fryday said the squad wouldn’t shy away from the realities of their performance ahead next Sunday’s visit of Italy, who host England later today, to Musgrave Park.

"We always say what’s said on the pitch is never taken to heart or taken personally," said Fryday. "We are not afraid to turn around to each other and say what needs to be said but I am extremely proud of the girls for the effort that they put in today. They didn’t back down at any stage.

"We came out in the second half and really ramped it up so I’ll be looking at those positives but there are words that need to be had and that’s part of rugby, part of sport. They have a very strong scrum and it definitely was a weapon they used against us.

"When you are struggling in that area it’s about locking down and just win our ball as quickly and cleanly as we can. At times we did that, at times they overpowered us. We’ll do our homework honestly. We need to build our time [on the ball], cut down the penalties."