WHEN IT ALL boils down, Niamh Briggs sums up her goal in four simple words.
“Win the Six Nations.”
James Crombie / INPHO
James Crombie / INPHO / INPHO
The Waterford fullback is enjoying the perks and the pressure of captaining Ireland Women on the edge of a new era.
The excitement of taking up Fiona Coghlan’s leadership mantle was still clear to see when Briggs sat down with The42 last week. She was honoured, absolutely, and still surprised to get the call.
“It was never really put to me,” she admits wide-eyed, “I just got a phone call on Sunday evening on my way home from the Wales match – high-tailing it back to Limerick for work – when Anthony Eddy [performance director] rang me.
“I didn’t really think I was in the frame for it so… it was unbelievable. I nearly crashed the car because I was like ‘what’s he ringing me for?”
Advertisement
The hands-free kit was called into action while Garda Briggs’ heart was still in her mouth.
Bad thoughts start going through your head then. ‘Did I do something wrong in a match, or have I been dropped?’
Perish the thought. The 45-cap goal-kicker was getting even more responsibility placed on her shoulders.
“I was absolutely delighted, [said] yes straight away. It’s very cliche, but it’s the ultimate honour.”
Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
It seems odd that Briggs didn’t consider her claim to the role. She probably wouldn’t have blinked had someone like Claire Molloy, Sophie Spence or Gillian Bourke taken the ‘armband’ instead. Clearly though, Eddy and head coach Tom Tierney have seen the way she deals with pressure, and leads by word and deed.
“I genuinely hadn’t really thought about it, but when you think about like that,” Briggs says as the job description begins to fit.
“It’s not that I had no ambition to be, I just never really thought about it to be honest. I had a bit of an injury problem since the World Cup, so I was concentrating in getting myself get fit and the best I could be for the squad.”
Billy Stickland / INPHO
Billy Stickland / INPHO / INPHO
That hamstring worry is now at ease after the Limerick-based Garda put it to the test with five weeks of intense training to build up before last week’s photocall in London. There was also an all-too rare out-of-tournament match when Wales visited Ashbourne for a pre-tournament hit-out.
Games like that become all the more invaluable when Tierney adds 12 new names to the squad with half of them primed to win a debut in Italy.
England captain Tamara Taylor, Scotland captain Tracy Balmer, France captain Gayle Mignot, Ireland captain Niamh Briggs, Italy captain Sileva Gaudino and Wales captain Rachael Taylor James Crombie / INPHO
James Crombie / INPHO / INPHO
And speaking of the Azzurri, Briggs issues a strong reminder that the women in blue pose a much different threat than their male counterparts.
“They play a very good brand of rugby and they’re very into their general movement and seeing where the space is. So defensively you’ve got to be in tune all the time and if not they’ll catch you on the hop.
“They’ve got an extremely good back three that can counter from anywhere. yeah look it’s going to be difficult for us, first game under a new structure so patience is going to be a big thing for us.”
Once she crosses the line though, the game becomes one big step on the way to her over-arching goal:
“Look, I’m very ambitious when I play and I’m incredibly competitive – and we as a squad are incredibly competitive, so…”
'I nearly crashed the car': Briggs admits shock at Ireland captaincy call but ready to take on Europe
WHEN IT ALL boils down, Niamh Briggs sums up her goal in four simple words.
“Win the Six Nations.”
The Waterford fullback is enjoying the perks and the pressure of captaining Ireland Women on the edge of a new era.
The excitement of taking up Fiona Coghlan’s leadership mantle was still clear to see when Briggs sat down with The42 last week. She was honoured, absolutely, and still surprised to get the call.
“It was never really put to me,” she admits wide-eyed, “I just got a phone call on Sunday evening on my way home from the Wales match – high-tailing it back to Limerick for work – when Anthony Eddy [performance director] rang me.
“I didn’t really think I was in the frame for it so… it was unbelievable. I nearly crashed the car because I was like ‘what’s he ringing me for?”
The hands-free kit was called into action while Garda Briggs’ heart was still in her mouth.
Perish the thought. The 45-cap goal-kicker was getting even more responsibility placed on her shoulders.
“I was absolutely delighted, [said] yes straight away. It’s very cliche, but it’s the ultimate honour.”
It seems odd that Briggs didn’t consider her claim to the role. She probably wouldn’t have blinked had someone like Claire Molloy, Sophie Spence or Gillian Bourke taken the ‘armband’ instead. Clearly though, Eddy and head coach Tom Tierney have seen the way she deals with pressure, and leads by word and deed.
“I genuinely hadn’t really thought about it, but when you think about like that,” Briggs says as the job description begins to fit.
“It’s not that I had no ambition to be, I just never really thought about it to be honest. I had a bit of an injury problem since the World Cup, so I was concentrating in getting myself get fit and the best I could be for the squad.”
That hamstring worry is now at ease after the Limerick-based Garda put it to the test with five weeks of intense training to build up before last week’s photocall in London. There was also an all-too rare out-of-tournament match when Wales visited Ashbourne for a pre-tournament hit-out.
Games like that become all the more invaluable when Tierney adds 12 new names to the squad with half of them primed to win a debut in Italy.
And speaking of the Azzurri, Briggs issues a strong reminder that the women in blue pose a much different threat than their male counterparts.
“They play a very good brand of rugby and they’re very into their general movement and seeing where the space is. So defensively you’ve got to be in tune all the time and if not they’ll catch you on the hop.
“They’ve got an extremely good back three that can counter from anywhere. yeah look it’s going to be difficult for us, first game under a new structure so patience is going to be a big thing for us.”
Once she crosses the line though, the game becomes one big step on the way to her over-arching goal:
“Look, I’m very ambitious when I play and I’m incredibly competitive – and we as a squad are incredibly competitive, so…”
Four simple words. Five tough games.
Ireland Women aiming for ‘the next level’ with big changes on and off the field
Jake Heenan captain, Rodney Ah You to start Connacht Eagles’ clash with Ravens
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
6 Nations 6Nations captain leader legend Six Nations fullback Ireland Women niamh briggs