Ireland Name Seven Uncapped Players for WXV Global Series

Ireland head coach Scott Bemand has included seven uncapped players in a 36-player squad for the 2026 WXV Global Series. BBC Sport reported that the group will prepare for home matches against the United States and Japan in September before travelling to Cape Town for two Tests against South Africa in October.

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The uncapped forwards are Jemima Adams Verling, Sophie Barrett, Beth Buttimer and Kate Jordan. Caitriona Finn, Lucia Linn and Alana McInerney are the three uncapped backs. Buttimer, Finn and McInerney were part of Ireland's wider Six Nations squad earlier this year, alongside Adams Verling and Barrett, while Jordan and Linn have received their first senior call-ups.

The selections follow the Women's Interprovincial Championship, where Munster won their first three matches to reach Saturday's final against Leinster. Bemand said the competition had demonstrated the quality emerging through the Irish system and described the newcomers' inclusion as especially pleasing. He added that the selected players would have an opportunity to challenge themselves and compete for international honours.

Ireland begin the series against the United States in Dublin on September 20, then host Japan in Galway on September 27. A second meeting with Japan follows in Cork on October 3, although that match is not part of the WXV Global Series. Ireland will then face South Africa in Cape Town on October 24 and again at the same venue on October 31.

Eight England-based players are in Bemand's panel. Gloucester-Hartpury trio Neve Jones, Niamh O'Dowd and Sam Monaghan have been selected, along with Sale Sharks forward Brittany Hogan and Trailfinders back-three player Niamh Gallagher. Exeter Chiefs pair Cliodhna Moloney-MacDonald and Dorothy Wall are also included, while their club teammate Nancy McGillivray was not named.

Connacht wing Beibhinn Parsons has made the squad despite missing her province's opening three Interprovincial Championship games through injury, according to BBC Sport. The roster contains 20 forwards and 16 backs, giving Ireland a broad group for a schedule that spans five matches in six weeks and includes four fixtures that count toward the new WXV format.