USA Women's Eagles overturn 12-point deficit to stun Ireland 40-36 in Dublin

The USA Women’s Eagles produced a stunning second-half comeback to defeat Ireland 40-36 at Tallaght Stadium in Dublin, overturning a 12-point half-time deficit to open their WXV Global Series campaign with a statement victory.

Ireland had looked in control at the break, leading 24-12, but the Eagles were transformed after the interval. Four tries in the second half turned the game on its head, with Kathryn Treder crossing twice and Hallie Taufoou and player of the match Freda Tafuna also touching down as Jack Hanratty’s side held their nerve to claim a memorable win on Irish soil.

Tafuna was candid about the scale of the challenge after the final whistle. “Props to Ireland — they really gave it to us. We knew coming into this game that we’d have to give it our all because we’d be the underdogs,” she said. “We went into the locker room and talked about how we needed to bring up our defence, so that’s what we did, and we came out with the result we wanted.”

The Eagles’ co-captain Georgie Perris-Redding was equally emotional, pointing to the collective effort behind the turnaround. “Anyone could have watched that first half and written the USA off and thought we were out of it. We knew we could win this,” she said. “There are 37 training players that we had in last week and it’s down to all of them and the staff.”

Perris-Redding also acknowledged that the squad had spent two weeks in Ireland preparing for the series, enduring what she described as “some really tough sessions” before the campaign opener.

Attention now turns to Wales, who await the Eagles at Cardiff Arms Park on Saturday, 26 September. Perris-Redding offered a measured assessment of the next opponents after watching their opening fixture. “Wales looked really good and clinical out there and we know they’re a physical team. We’re going to go away, work really hard and hopefully go and put a performance out in Cardiff.”

Tafuna, meanwhile, struck a confident note about what the result signals for the rest of the series. “I think we’re setting the tone with this game and this win, so I hope we can carry it on with our next matches.”