- Emma Duffy reports from the RDS

NICHOLA FRYDAY’S FIRST outing as Ireland captain didn’t end exactly how she would have liked, but she was still happy with her day’s work.

The Greg McWilliams era and 2022 Six Nations bid opened with a disappointing 27-19 defeat to Wales in front of a record crowd at the RDS, as three unanswered tries in the closing 10 minutes did the damage.

Ultimately, a late double from replacement Donna Rose and another from Hannah Jones while Eimear Considine was in the sin-bin sealed the deal, as Ioan Cunningham’s physical side overpowered their hosts in the second half.

But they’ll take plenty of positives from the run-out, with Amee-Leigh Murphy Crowe, Linda Djougang and Stacey Flood all crossing for Ireland, who showed flashes of brilliance at times.

“I’m hugely proud of the girls, the performance we put out, there were glimpses of really positive stuff for us,” Fryday said afterwards. “We’ll take our learnings from the things that didn’t go well, but the girls left everything on the pitch.

“I said at the start of the game we had to empty the tank and come in knowing we did everything we could. That’s what the girls did. I’m proud of them for that. We’ll take our learnings and move on.”

“Wales did exactly what we said they would do,” she continued. “Their power game is something they are known for, and maybe that bit of experience they had, but we still had positive patches in that game, and I’m extremely proud of the girls for sticking with it and not giving up.”

The second row was withdrawn in the closing stages after appearing to struggle with a knock, but confirmed afterwards that she’s “still in one piece” and “all good,” with a smile.

That remained as she delved deeper into the positives on show in Ballsbridge this evening, for which 6,113 fans witnessed.

“I think in parts of that game you saw glimpses of the attacking game we’re trying to play,” she explained.

“We have serious backs, and in the pack we have extremely skillful players. The offload from Sam [Monagahan] to Linda [Djougang] for that try, that’s just something you dream of as a forward. There are huge positives.

“To have that crowd, the first one we’ve had since 2020 in the Six Nations. Some girls haven’t got to experience that with Covid. They got to experience that home support, and we’re really appreciative of the crowd that came out.”

The captaincy, and leading her country out for the very first time, was unquestionably another positive.

“It was a huge moment, I was extremely proud,” the Tullamore woman noted. “Every person dreams of captaining their country, and very few actually get to fulfill that role, For me, it was a huge moment and I’m just proud of the girls for that shift. Hopefully we can keep going.”

Next up is a daunting trip to France next Saturday, with Toulouse hosting the clash against the world powerhouse.

It’s certainly a steep learning curve, but a challenge Fryday and co. are relishing.

“We have no choice to but to put our heads down, make fixes and focus on next week,” she concluded.

“Our discipline let us down today so that’ll be a focus next week. You can’t give those penalties against France because they will crucify you for that.

“We will take our learnings from that match and implement as much as we can during the week, and just get onto the pitch and do exactly the same and more next week.”