Ireland's Stacey Flood aims to hit the ground running at World Cup

Ireland's Stacey Flood. Pic: Ben Brady/Inpho

Stacey Flood insists that Ireland intend to start off as they mean to go on when they get their World Cup campaign underway against Japan this Sunday.

Scott Bemand’s team has taken its time to get into gear through the warm-up stage with Scotland shooting into a 14-0 lead in Cork and Canada amassing a 40-7 lead a week later before their hosts in Belfast found their feet.

Avoiding a repeat against a Japanese team that is targeting a repeat of their men’s side’s famous defeat of the Springboks in England ten years ago will be first on the agenda as the Pool C story starts to be told.

"From warm-up games, you don't want to go out the blocks too early and be performing 10 out of 10 because that's what the warm-up games are for: they are to learn what you need to do, right and wrong,” said Flood. “I feel we got what we wanted out of those games.

“We found areas that we need to improve on, and we have been improving on them in the last few days. We started slow in those games, so that's going to be a big focus of ours going into the weekend, that we put our game out there first and we start fast.

"We didn't get into the Irish way enough, starting our game as soon as we get onto the field. We kind of took 20 minutes to get into the games.

“That put us on the back foot in both games and waiting for something to happen, whereas we actually have to go out and put our front foot first and make things happen for ourselves.” 

Japan are ranked eleventh in the world, six places below Ireland, but they have benefited as much as anyone by the increased Test schedule of recent years thanks to the advent of the three-tier WXV series.

Italy, Scotland and Wales have all been pushed to the pin of their collars and a first win over the USA, an historically strong presence in the women’s game that has weakened in recent years, was another boon as they look to make an imprint of RWC25.

"Japan are so diligent,” said Flood, the Irish full-back. “They might not be the biggest team, but they're so skilful and their kicks are on a T, their passes are on a T, they're really good jackal threats.

“We know what they're good at, but it's also just about bringing back to our squad and what our strengths are and not playing too much to the opposition. When you start changing for other people, you go away from your own game. We're happy with where our game is and we know what we're good at.”