Ireland stun world champions New Zealand in WXV opener TheJournal.ie [Video]

THE IRELAND WOMEN’S rugby team have stunned the reigning World Champions New Zealand in their opening game at the WXV1 tournament with a 29-27 victory.

There was nothing separating the sides at half-time, as Player of the Match Aoife Wafer grabbed two first-half tries while Neve Jones also crossed over to leave the scoreline reading 17 apiece at the break.

An Erin King try then gave Ireland the lead on 67 minutes and she added her second of the night in the dying moments before Dannah O’Brien nailed the conversion to deliver an epic victory for Ireland.

“It’s unbelievable,” Wafer said after the game.

“We wanted to give the fans at home something to cheer about and to have the group behind us like that is just incredibly special. To put out what we’ve done right now is hard to put into words.

“But I’m sure we’ll enjoy tonight and we’ll get straight back to the grind …